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News and Comment January 2022

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20 January - When the music stops

Event cancelledThe advertised music event in Danson Park will not take place. There was always something rather odd about how it came to be proposed and readers have not been slow to pick up on the vibes, but the following is all that is known for certain.

There are links to the Thank You party for volunteers.

The decision to hold that party was taken in May 2021 and it was held on 8th August, expertly - so I was told - organised by a company called City Events. It must have taken quite some organising; marquees, flooring, toilets, generators, waiters etc. Lucy Beckwith, the company Director is well known in Bexley as the owner of Blend in the Broadway.

Despite what must have been lengthy preparations, legal permission to bypass the tendering process and to place a contract was not given until 3rd August. The bill came to £37,475.

A Freedom of Information Request was ignored until the Information Commissioner intervened but it revealed only the tender waiving process. What went on behind closed doors in June and July is not known for sure but one Councillor has said it was taken up by abortive sub-Committee meetings.

It is said by another Councillor that the Director of City Events was so impressed by Danson Park that she decided to use her associate company to stage a music festival there. Ms. Beckwith, a lady with local connections, apparently did not, before the tea party, know anything about Bexley’s biggest park.

And now Dream Valley is off. Bexley Council says it never signed the contract and got cold feet about the impact locally.

It has been rumoured that there are close links between Lucy Beckwith and a senior Bexley Conservative Councillor. This I can confirm is true, they have known each other since their teenage years.

There is no real evidence at all that anything untoward has taken place and certainly there is nothing that reflects badly on the company that stepped into Bexley’s breach, but Bexley Council appears to be on a mission to reclaim their reputation for making things look more than a little ‘fishy’.

 

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