Dear Ben,
Here is my second email of three, this time commenting on Hazel Ball’s letter to you dated 5th March 2008. The text of this letter is copied below for your convenience. Before I deal with this, I wish to make a huge point about Exeter City Council’s values.
2% (just a mere two per cent) of Hazel Ball’s salary would cover the historic average annual maintenance costs of the Summerway Club’s premises with money to spare!
I point this out, not to devalue Hazel, but to indicate the City Council’s estimate
of her worth compared to their valuation of the Club, which could have been sustained
at so small a public commitment. Councillors are willing to spend a published £71,000
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John, the Club coach, and I are both qualified schoolteachers and, between us for decades, we have put in more voluntary hours each week on behalf of the Club than a normal person in full employment gives to their job. Besides this, the Club provided superb tennis instruction and other services for its complement of 85 children. Scaling up Hazel’s 2% to 100%, the clear message from Exeter City Council is that Hazel is valued more highly than 50 full time teachers and the benefit of the Club to 4,250 children.
Do you see the Council’s arrogance and self-
Due to the complexity of the situation, I could imagine Councillors and officials prevaricating with all sorts of specious arguments. Nevertheless, common sense declares that the Council is responsible for an appalling decision regarding the Park and Club. Who is guilty of undervaluing or overlooking the Club, surely a serious crime against the community? Was it a decision by a Councillor or Councillors? Was it a decision made by an Officer or Officers? Was it a decision by the Strategic Management Team, of which Hazel is a member? Was it some other grouping?
We have no means of telling. Could you find out for us, please? It would be very helpful if the author(s) responsible for the ‘Park over everything’ decision owned up. Someone must have been responsible for floating the idea. In the interests of open government, I think that person ought to be identified if the Council decides to call it a group decision. In any case, even a group decision should have required adequate assessment and/or meaningful consultation with the Club, which we can categorically state never occurred. Instead, the Council now refuses to engage, with Hazel and the Leisure Manager having totally failed to address our points and queries, or even to have made any attempt to do so. Even your good offices were unable to influence this dereliction.
Regarding Hazel’s letter of 5th March, her second and third paragraphs have something of a stratospheric feel about them to me. I refer you to the link below, where my fifth bullet point of the email and letter is particularly relevant. All sorts of opportunities exist for those with money and transport, but where is the daily provision of affordable tennis for those for whom it would be most beneficial?
The Council’s maintenance of tennis courts mentioned in Hazel’s fourth paragraph demonstrates her remoteness from the real world. Just click on the ‘Summerway Nets Video’ box on the first page of www.summerway.org to view our YouTube posting to see exactly what I mean. Inspect the courts for yourself if you are in any doubt.
I cannot see how Hazel’s aloofness towards me personally, illustrated in her fifth
paragraph, is in any way justifiable on rational grounds. It smacks of pure prejudice,
born out of ignorance. I presume this is maintained to avoid facing up to reality.
We have met similar attempts to hide behind a generality before by way of an excuse,
and it only works with the simple-
Alan Caig, Head of Leisure and Museums (cc Hazel Ball): “Following consultation with colleagues and elected members I have therefore instructed my staff to end dialogue with you and the club over its use of Summerway.”
Hazel Ball, Director, Community and Environment: “... we have always indicated that we are willing to meet and deal with the club.”
Sadly, there are no effective means for us to combat such Orwellian traits in the City Council. Hazel is clearly as willing as Alan to make false and misleading statements in order to appear competent and in the right. Finally, may I make it clear that nothing about Hazel in this email is intended personally. We have never met, and she might be a perfectly nice person in her private life for all I know. Equally clear is that we have opposing views about the Council’s bullying of the Club, which I regard as deplorable. It is difficult to see how we could ever reach agreement until the City Council does its homework, squares up to the fact that it has made a grave error of judgement regarding the Club and its Membership Secretary, and makes appropriate restitution.
Yours sincerely,
Jim.
Link showing where the credit truly lies:
Dear Ben
In response to your enquiry about tennis in the city, I hope the following will be of assistance.
The City Council's sports development team organises a tennis development programme
in partnership with the Exeter University Tennis Centre coaching team. Last year
this included coaching activities on City Council courts for young people aged 4
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Our Sports Development Manager is currently in discussion with the coaching team at Victoria Park Tennis Club and the Exeter Schools Sports Partnership about a city wide tennis development programme that will include schools coaching plus holiday coaching programmes at two of the City Council park sites. The Sports Development Manager also sits on a Tennis Steering Group that coordinates the programming and community tennis activities of the Exeter University Tennis Centre coaching team.
The City Council maintains a number of courts, and no fees are charged for casual or individual use.
I have read the content of the various attachments which Mr Harle sent you, and I consider they illustrate precisely why we decline to deal with Mr Harle himself, although we have always indicated that we are willing to meet and deal with the club.
Yours sincerely
Hazel Ball
Director Community and Environment
cc: Portfolio Holder Environment & Leisure, Members File, General File
Emails to MP (2 of 3) -
This series of three emails was sent to Ben Bradshaw MP in response to the letter he had received from Hazel Ball about tennis provision in Exeter. This second of the series was sent 13th June 2008, and focuses particularly on the immensity of the value the Council places on this officer. This is hardly justified for a member of ECC’s Strategic Management Team who contradicts her Head of Leisure and Museums by making an untruthful statement. Both are tarred with the same brush as that ECC officer was untruthful on the Five News website.
Hazel’s letter to Ben appears in the frame below this email.