Clevedon facilities to reopen after insurance agreement

Local facilities were closed on Monday evening due to an issue with the council's insurance

Public facilities are set to reopen in a seaside town after a council reached a compromise with its insurers.

Clevedon Town Council was dropped by Aviva Insurance on Monday in a decision linked to a councillor's personal financial record.

Aviva has now said that after discussions with the council it has "agreed a way to reinstate most of the cover with immediate effect".

The council said it sincerely regrets the decision to close facilities.

"This was actioned by the legal advice. The town could not effectively function without such cover," it said in a statement.

Services and facilities run by the authority are expected to reopen from 09:00 BST on Friday.

Activities at the Barn Youth and Community Centre were cancelled

The matter has affected Clevedon Town Council's own offices, which were made out of bounds on Monday evening, with staff sent home on paid leave.

Residents also found themselves "strictly forbidden" from accessing their allotments, Herbert Gardens open space and the seafront tennis courts.

Allotment holders spoke of their frustration over the situation, saying "something has gone very wrong" and they were "very disappointed".

Town council chairman Trevor Morgan said: "It has been a difficult time and caused an awful lot of stress, not only to fellow councillors but also to the town as a whole.

"It has damaged our public reputation which I think is very regrettable.

"I'm glad that we've been able to resolve the situation and that we can hopefully move on to a more positive outcome."

It emerged on Wednesday that Aviva had withdrawn the cover after being alerted that local councillor Carl Francis-Pester had county court judgements (CCJs) connected to him.

In response, Mr Francis-Pester said: "This spurious allegation was made that the council cannot get insurance because of county court judgements related to either limited companies with which I have been associated, or me personally."

He said he is considering legal action against the council over the way he claims he has been treated.

A temporary closure notice was put near allotment entrances

An Aviva spokesperson said: "Earlier this year we were made aware of a material issue affecting some insurance covers that Aviva underwrites for Clevedon Town Council.

"We raised this issue with the council, but unfortunately the situation could not be resolved, which meant that we found it necessary to cancel the policy, effective 14 August."

'Neither error or blunder'

The council statement, signed by Mr Morgan and locum responsible financial officer Bruce Poole, said that the actions taken "were neither due to an error or blunder on the part of council officers".

It said that Aviva had stated at renewal that any councillor currently or historically having CCJs or bankruptcies registered against them, either personally or as a director of a company, would immediately be a disqualification against securing insurance cover.

The statement said: "The potentiality of claims could have run into many millions of pounds all of which would have come eventually from the residents of Clevedon through the precept tax.

"The town council expresses the wish that the explanation of its actions will in some small way mitigate why such a measure of some public spaces closure was necessary. "