By Herpreet Kaur Grewal
The company running a new deal for communities partnership in Nottingham has “coalesced into factions” and is “irrevocably damaged”, according to an unpublished report obtained by Regeneration & Renewal.
The report by a government-appointed advisor, obtained via a Freedom of Information request, says the Neighbourhood Development Company that manages the Radford and Hyson Green NDC partnership, had an atmosphere of “distrust and entrenched positions, aggravated by insufficient transparency and a lack of shared aims”.
Accusations about “conspiracies, personal power struggles, financial motivations and manipulation” are “common currency”, the report said.
These issues make the NDC “unlikely” to be stable enough to deliver the programme without “significant change”, the report added.
Recommendations include appointing a city council representative as director of the NDC board, and providing more external support, including mentoring for chief executive Sam Tarff. Tarff was suspended in December, pending an investigation. The investigation has been completed, though the results have not been made publicly available.
In February this year, chief inspector Mark Holland, a policeman on the board, resigned in protest at the treatment of Tarff. Also in February, vice-chair Bhagwant Tiwana was suspended due to what the board called “breaches of the code of conduct”.
A meeting between members of the NDC board, Nottingham City Council and the Government Office for the East Midlands last week concluded “to resolve various critical legal issues”, a statement from the NDC said. Members of the board agreed in principle that all review recommendations ought to be implemented, the statement added.