Council refuses to publish report justifying £1.65m football club spend

Summarised from Herts Advertiser's report · Updated 5 Nov, 13:09 · Archive

Hertsmere Council refuses to publish a review justifying £1.65m spending on Boreham Wood FC, written by a Labour politician.

Hertsmere Borough Council commissioned a community benefit review to justify spending £1.65 million from its Community Infrastructure Levy on Boreham Wood FC's new South Stand at Meadow Park. However, the council has refused to publish the report, which was described in officer papers as work by 'independent social impact experts'.

The review was written by Social Impact Consulting, a sole trading enterprise run by Nick Small, a Labour cabinet member on Liverpool City Council. Small was simultaneously involved in discussions about a film corridor partnership between Hertsmere and Liverpool, which began before the review was commissioned and continued after completion. When asked whether the council saw potential conflicts of interest, a spokesperson said they had sought proposals from four consultancies and subjected all bids to detailed evaluation, but did not address the conflict directly.

Councillors agreed in April to use the £1.65 million toward the £3.75 million cost of the new stand. The officer report said the community benefit review would 'assist in assessing the true benefits' of the proposal.

Read the report

• Council refuses to publish ‘independent’ report on £1.65m spend written by politicianHertsmere Council’s £1.65m Boreham Wood FC funding was justified by a withheld review written by a Labour councillor linked to council partnership talks.Herts Advertiser · 5 Nov, 11:02

In this story: Hertsmere Borough Council · Boreham Wood FC · Nick Small · Liverpool City Council · Hertsmere · Liverpool

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