Council’s £4,167 “top up” fee for Foundation

FRODSHAM Town Council has agreed to pay a “top up” fee of £4,167 to Frodsham Foundation to keep its internet newsletter going until the end of May.
The payment was approved by five votes to four and follows a £10,000 fee paid earlier this year after the newsletter was launched.
Cllr Mike Pusey – a director of the Foundation – stressed that the payment being sought was a fee for a service, not a grant.
The newsletter had been set up by the Foundation at the request of the Town Council but its costs had to be met if it was to keep running. It was for the council to decide if the newsletter was worth £10,000-a-year, although the Foundation was seeking only £4,167 to keep it running until the end of May.
Eventually it was hoped that newsletter would generate an income for the Foundation, would become self sustaining and that they would not need to come back to the council for another £10,000.
Cllr Graham Bondi questioned whether the newsletter represented value for money.
“There are quite a lot of Frodsham residents who do not use computers or tablets and do not use this form of communication,” he said.
He also queried whether the council should be adhering to its policy of seeking three competitive quotes for a service.
Town clerk Jon Wild said the newsletter was a “specialised service” and as such was exempt from the requirement of three quotations.
Cllr Lyn Riley – also a Foundation director – said it was doubtful if three quotations could be obtained locally as she could not think of anyone who could supply the service.
She said the service provided Frodsham with a wonderful communication portal used by lots of people.
Cllr Rita Shearn asked how much the council had paid to the Foundation in total, since its inception. She was told the figure was a little over ££30,000.
The council approved payment of the fee. Councillors who are also directors of the Foundation were excluded from the vote.