A politician has expressed concern about payments made from a controversial match day car park firm to local companies.
The Beautiful Ideas Compan y (BICo) was set up to raise money from match day parking facilities near Anfield and Goodison. The money was then to be invested in local good causes.
Now councillor Steve Radford , leader of the city's Liberal Party, has spoken out about the payments from BICo to four local companies. An audit report released by the council last month highlighted payments to Stanley Park CIC, Hestia Careers CIC, Mayfair Home Furniture and Kazimier Productions CIC.
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BICO awarded Stanley Park CIC £20,000 in January 2016 and awarded Hestia Careers the same amount in November 2017. Mayfair Home Furniture (MHF) received £50,00 during 2016 and 2017.Kazimier Productions received a £25,000 investment in 2016.PAO Collaborative Kitchen received received £2,000.
Three of the companies are no longer trading. Stanley Park CIC and Hestia Careers shared the same address at Anfield Lodge in Stanley Park.
Mayfair Home Furniture was incorporated in February 2015 and dissolved in October 2020. The audit report states that directors have since formed a new company called Mersey Regeneration.
Kazimier Productions was incorporated in October 2014 and went into liquidation in 2019. PAO Collaborative Kitchen is no longer trading. These three companies received a combined £77,000 from BICo.
A spokesperson for MHF said: "The grant Mayfair Home Furniture received in 2016, went on employing five young people, all of whom were previously long-term unemployed. Four subsequently moved into employment with other companies and one into vocational training."
Cllr Radford said to the ECHO : "Once again funds meant for the betterment of the people of Anfield , Kirkdale and County wards, some of the most deprived communities in the city, have been ploughed into companies that later failed.
"What sort of due diligence was carried out prior to awarding these disappearing grants.
"It looks like money down the drain which was meant to benefit the most deprived communities in north Liverpool.
"The payments to companies that later failed raises big questions about the type of due diligence carried out."
The audit report states that the payments from BICo to Stanley Park and Hestia Careers raised issues.
It reads: "These payments contravene the statement made by the BICo Board that their directors are ‘ineligible to apply for investment from the fund’.
"When this was raised , it stated that: ‘The intention of the minute was Board members would not receive payment (not prevent members from taking voluntary roles supporting charities/community ventures including those supported by BICo which was encouraged as viewed as good practice).
"Despite the above statement, and although it is understood that the BICo Board have identified that a record of the conflicts of interest should have been detailed in the minutes and have taken steps to improve this process, the aforementioned minutes dated 11th August 2015 specify that Board Members would be ineligible to apply for investment from the Fund’, whether conflicts of interest were declared or not."
The report's findings raise further concerns.
It reads :"Companies with same directorship as BICo were provided investment funds and BICo director may have been present when the pitch took place AND/OR when the decision was made in contravention of the BICo’s internal governance procedures;
"Possible poor investment decisions relating to financially unstable companies including companies no longer trading and therefore unable to provide monetary repayment of any kind;
"A number of Investments/loans made to companies whose director is also a Director of the BICo; Of the 16 companies/organisations awarded funding 13 are still going (although there was limited information available on those companies) and 3 were wound up."
The ECHO approached BICo for comment.
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