Follow the Money
CHRISTOPHER DODWELL
Over the past 50 years, changes in local government financing have significantly reduced the ability of local councils to make independent financial decisions reflecting the needs of their communities. As statutory obligations consume available funds, councils struggle to allocate resources to essential services. In Hastings, available funds are dedicated to emergency housing, leaving other vital services underfunded. Meanwhile, central government money is increasingly distributed through grant schemes managed by special bodies, such as Town Deal boards, Economic Development Agencies and, in future, through Freeports and Special Economic Zones. These operate with minimal oversight, creating a democratic deficit undermining local accountability and fairness.
OWENS boarded up
This has led to inefficient and inequitable resource allocation which, as a small building firm owner in Hastings, I have witnessed at first hand through two recent projects in which I was the main contractor–the redevelopment of Debenhams into the Owens entertainment centre in the town centre in 2022 and the construction of a new facility in St Leonards for Hastings & Bexhill Mencap, which supports adults with learning disabilities.
The Owens entertainment centre was a commercial venture backed by a Russian billionaire, Lubov Chernukhin, a major donor to the Conservative Party. Despite her vast wealth, including a private jet, yacht, and multiple luxury properties, the Hastings Town Deal Fund awarded an unconditional grant of £150,000 to Owens and also £250,000 to the London based freeholders of the building. The business is now in administration, leaving unsightly boarded-up shopfronts.
In contrast, Hastings & Bexhill Mencap invested £1.5 million of its own money to develop new facilities, yet received no financial assistance from Hastings Borough Council, East Sussex County Council, or Whitehall and was excluded from the Town Deal Fund due to geographic constraints. This charity employs over 50 local people, supports hundreds of adults and families, and significantly contributes to the town’s economic, cultural, and social well-being. The Frimley Centre has been developed particularly for those with complex needs, with new disability-accessible features, a teaching kitchen, a sensory classroom, an arts & crafts room and a large rehearsal space. Mencap still lacks the £150,000 needed to complete external landscaping and decoration.
It is astonishing that a billionaire with no connection to Hastings received a huge grant and disappeared with the money, while a crucial local organisation that profoundly benefits the community has received nothing.
See: hastings-bexhill-mencap.org
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