Holocaust Memorial Day 2021

Tonight (Wednesday 26th January), a group of residents, along with the Mayor of Chesterfield gathered to mark Holocaust Memorial Day.

The event, where a large number of candles were lit, and reading and poems were shared, was coordinated by Cllr Ed Fordham.

Ed said “I believe it is really important that we never forget and that we learn the lessons of the Holocaust and past genocides.  My grandfather served in WWII and saw the camp of Bergen Belsen. I myself have worked in The Balkans and been to Srebrenica where there was modern day genocide as recent as 1995.

“Each year I have lit candles on my own drive in the form of a triangle of lights but decided that this could be a more public commitment. Accordingly working with fellow councillors, The Mayor, Derbyshire LGBT+ and Chesterfield’s Stand up to Racism. Tonight we gathered in New Square and made the commitment to never forget.

“In the aftermath of the Holocaust of WWII gay men were kept imprisoned after camp liberations as being gay was still a crime under the penal code of most countries.  Upon learning this I pledged for myself - NEVER AGAIN. NEVER FORGET.”

Thanks also to Cllr Shirley Niblock and Cllr Jill Mannion-Brunt for their support.

Is old age safe under the Tories

Consultation on care homes to go ahead but there will be no repairs.

 

A controversial decision to consult on whether 7 of Derbyshire County Council’s care homes should be closed had a bizarre twist when the Tory members of the Improvement and Scrutiny Committee passed the following motion 

‘ to advise Cabinet that as to carry out all of the necessary repairs and refurbishments would not make the seven homes fit for purpose in order to provide good and appropriate care for the residents of Derbyshire, it would seem inappropriate to undertake that work’.

 

We think that means they intend to “consult” current residents and their families but one of the options cannot be continuing in their existing care home that would have been re-furbished. 

 

“Pie in the sky before you die?”

The Tory position seems to be to dismiss all that is currently being achieved in the existing care homes (which may well have maintenance issues) because they are not shiny new cutting edge buildings. This is disappointing for both residents and care home staff.

If the Conservative controlling group were prepared to stand by their pre-election commitment to build new state of the art care homes to replace those they describe as less than ideal, then shouldn’t there be one taking shape in eg Bakewell before they start considering moving residents out of Gernon Manor, the DCC care hpme in the town?

 

Please get in touch to Save Our Care Homes

https://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/politics/campaign-urges-relatives-and-staff-to-get-involved-to-save-derbyshire-care-homes-3476403

Coun Fordham urged anyone wishing to get involved in the campaign to email soch.dcc@gmail.com in confidence.

To sign the Save Our Care Homes petition, visit bit.ly/SaveOurCareHomes.

7,500 SIGNATURES NEEDED

Today we have gone live with the petition to save Derbyshire’s Care Homes from sale or closure.

https://apps.derbyshire.gov.uk/applications/petitions/details.asp?PetitionID=354

At first it was feared that this was of the 7 care homes that need physical work and maintenance - but upon reading the report it is clear that this is just the start.

The very start of the document clearly and deliberately compares Derbyshire with authorities who run very few or even no care homes, with authorities that have sold or closed all the local authority care homes.

There is NO comparison with similar authorities who have similar numbers of care homes such as Cumbria, Hampshire or Lancashire. Instead there is a clear direction of  travel toward none.

So please, if you support Derbyshire County Council being a provider of Direct Care Homes for Older People then please sign the petition and encourage others to do so.

Consultation to close care homes stopped

 

Derbyshire Care Home Closures Halted

I can confirm that I have the confirmation of a call-in on yesterday’s Cabinet decision and have secured signatures from:

Cllr Ed Fordham (Liberal Democrat)

Cllr Barry Bingham (Liberal Democrat)

Cllr Gez Kinsella (Green)

Cllr Joan Dixon (Labour)

Cllr Paul Niblock (Liberal Democrat)

Cllr Sue Burfoot (Liberal Democrat)

 

I will now prepare the formal document to submit to you.  At this stage I am confident that the proposed decision breaches Articles 7.2 (e), 7.2 (f) and 7.2 (g).  Please take this email as notice of the call in to ensure that the implementation of the Cabinet decision is put on hold, and I will now prepare a formal documentary submission for you. I hope to have this ready by Monday.

 

Our principle objections are:

-             This does not significantly differ from the previous consultation

-             This will cause real stress, fear and worry to an already vulnerable group of residents

-             This report does not address the information contained in previous reports on the viability of the homes

-             Consultation with councillors, where the care homes has residents and associated relatives interested in the care homes, have been non-existent or cursory

-             We are yet to see the final Market Position Statement and to take account of the viability of the PVI sector following the impact of the pandemic and of the 2022/23 financial settlement on the sector (which will not include the additional Infection Control funding that has kept the sector going over the last 2 years).

 

I would be very grateful if you could confirm to myself and those copied in that this has been received and accepted. Please note I am copying in my gmail account as I am out this afternoon and don’t want to carry my laptop with me. Can you also confirm in writing that the Adult Social Care team are fully aware and cognisant that they cannot proceed in any way to implement the decision whilst the call-in is underway. Can I further give notice to you both that I will be submitting an FOI to the Adult Social Care team to ensure that this is cessation of the decision is complied with over the coming days and weeks.

 

Many thanks,

 

Ed Fordham

Councillor for Loundsley green and Newbold

Liberal Democrat Group Leader

Derbyshire County Council

Derbyshire Email Scandal

It has emerged and been confirmed that for some time - possibly a period of years - Derbyshire County Council has been accessing, reading and in some cases responding to the private emails of councillors.

Cllr Ed Fordham, Leader of the Liberal Democrats on the County said “This is a scandal. There have been concerns for some time that emails of councillors have been interfered with, but it has been largely dismissed. It wasn’t until I myself realised that staff were accessing my email directly that I demanded clarification and honesty. 

“I was stunned that confirmation came back that four staff indeed did have access and they did read my email. At no point whatsoever have I been asked for consent, I have never agreed to this and I did not know. Much of my correspondence is of a very personal nature regarding issues facing my residents. Often I am raising serious concerns with managers about the effectiveness of departments and the quality of work done. Now I find that these - often highly personal and highly confidential - were being read all along by staff who did not have my consent.

“I believe - and the advice I have been given confirms this - that this is highly illegal and in flagrant breach of Data Protection Law and GDPR.  Further, I believe that this practise was knowingly enabled by senior staff.

“I formally raised this with the Head of Paid Service and the Director of Legal and Democratic Services on Thursday 4th November. By Friday 5th November I had forced the Council to cease unauthorised access to the emails of Liberal Democrat councillors and I have now tabled a motion to the next meeting of Full Council. 

“It is perhaps even more astonishing that the information officers were accessing was financial information provided to me by local residents and groups.

“The Council has now referred itself to its internal investigator - but I am calling for an automatic referral by the County Council to the ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office) for a genuinely independent investigation.  If the Council does not refer itself then I shall.

“My predecessor as Liberal Democrat Leader, Cllr Beth Atkin, often raised concerns about her emails and access and they were dismissed - it is now evident that her fears had substance.

“What Derbyshire County Council has been doing is out of order, ethically wrong and without the very basic principle of consent. GDPR law was only brought in in 2018 and yet this practise clearly was going on long before this. I fear that we have IT policies that have been ignored, sidelined and this is a Council that has become complacent and arrogant and I believe, acting outside Data Protection and GDPR law.

“It is also clear that the practise of accessing emails of councillors has not been confined to myself and the Liberal Democrats, but to every single councillor, and at no point did the Council get individual written consent.

“This practise has to stop and I am demanding that it is stopped immediately - residents and councillors deserve better.  Bad practise such as this should be exposed so that everyone can learn - learn that this is unacceptable.  This is why I have now tabled my motion to Full Council on 1st December.”

This scandal comes in the context of the news that the County Council is also banning staff from having direct contact with the media - this is not healthy, nor natural and sets a poor example to residents whom the Council is supposed to serve

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/politics/investigation-after-councillor-discovers-derbyshire-county-council-reads-confidential-emails-3460438%3famp