Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
How many £ millions is Haringey Council owed by the final collapse of Fusion Lifestyle?
THIRD SECTOR: Major leisure charity goes into Administration
Several years ago—when Haringey Labour privatised our Borough's Leisure centres—the council at the same time lent a huge sum from our taxes to Fusion Lifestyle.
I understand our cash was intended to help with repairs and maintenance that the council had failed to perform over many previous years.
The loan quantum is shrouded in mystery, but it could exceed the council's total losses through their series of irregular or corrupt property deals. (Those losses in themselves were more than £12 million).
- More recently, the council reversed their earlier decision – i.e. they insourced their earlier outsourcing
- We, the residents, would seem to be (unsecured?) Creditors in the Fusion Administration
- I've heard a suggestion that our council's loans and/or losses in Fusion losses may be approximately £14,000,000
- Within council circles, this situation has been known about for a long time
- It is unknown what—if any—efforts were made by legal service staff to recover the multi-million pound loan(s). Lent unwisely, or without sufficient safeguards by staff.
I think we should be told.
As with many major municipal money matters there is … omertà.
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Tags for Forum Posts: Administration, Borough, Fusion Leisure, Haringey Council, Leisure Centres, bankruptcy, loan, millions
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Annie McDonald
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Meanwhile the council is spending a huge amount of money on gym equipment. Now what was going to be a dedicated yoga/Pilates studio is now going to be incorporated into the gym. Apparently someone on ‘high’ said gyms were profitable. We have less classes than before which are now crammed into the main studio 3 ( the other studio is small and not used so much). Many things don’t work and the toilets are constantly blocked! Lights cannot be dimmed and are extremely bad for eyes when doing any floor exercises. It’s often filthy in Studio 3 (we constantly find mud in certain areas) and the dust bunnies are awful! I could go on but despite this we all love our classes, teachers are great and the poor staff do their absolute best and are always welcoming. We badly need the new equipment in the gym as most of it hasn’t worked since Fusion left just think we also needed the extra studio as many people cannot get into classes as they are booked up immediately. The whole outsourcing of the centre was a disaster waiting to happen!
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Permalink Reply by Clive Carter
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The whole outsourcing of the centre was a disaster waiting to happen!
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Yes.
At a Neighbourhood Forum meeting (remember those?) around the time of that outsourcing, I asked of the new head of Planning then present about the millions she claimed that Fusion would "invest".
She was new to the job and said something about being unfamiliar with the details. But she was happy to boast about the "investment" the outsourcing would bring.
I had asked if the new investment" was broadly equal to the value of repairs and maintenance not done by the council over many years previously.
The new Director may not have known about the lending of millions of pounds of public money, never mind the extent of it.
The council seems less interested in physical activity or exercise and is more focused on the Borough's cultural offer. As evidenced by Borough of Culture 2027 and the engagement of a Director of Culture on a salary of c. £165,000, plus annual pension contribution of c. £30,000.
The council would continue to claim they have no money.
Is that true and if true, then is it any wonder?
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