Cash-strapped Derbyshire town council to receive bailout

Staveley Town Council has a deficit of more than £400,000, according to the authority's leader

A town council will avoid bankruptcy after a neighbouring authority agreed to issue a £400,000 loan.

Staveley Town Council (STC) was preparing to cut jobs and facing threats of legal action from a union over debts and a £400,000 deficit.

On Wednesday Chesterfield Borough Council agreed to lend money to them, secured against council assets.

The borough council did not confirm if it was interested in acquiring the Speedwell Rooms owned by STC.

Earlier this month, Staveley Hall Cafe closed after redundancies were confirmed, with staff revealing they had only managed in recent weeks due to public donations.

The union Unison then said it would be bringing legal action after some staff were told they would only receive redundancy money in instalments.

During Wednesday's meeting, borough council leader Tricia Gilby questioned why STC had not applied for government grant funding, which she claimed could have been worth up to £144,000.

'Deeply concerning'

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said during the meeting, it was revealed STC had been taking tax and pension payments from wages, and failing to pass them over to HMRC and the Derbyshire Pension Fund "in due course".

Ms Gilby said the town council owed £570,000 in total to staff, HMRC, the Derbyshire Pension Fund, central government, the borough council and other creditors.

She said with 80% of Staveley communities within the most deprived in England, it was "deeply concerning" the town council had run out of money at a time when households needed help most.

Paul Mann, a borough councillor and leader of town council, told the meeting the problems stemmed from the financial position he inherited from previous Labour leaders of STC, claiming there were no reserves and extensive debts at that time.