Are we really, REALLY surprised at anything this local authority does. They waste money on training(?) Councillors but cut vital funding to the more important organisations!!

why they need mony? they have many shop cheredy. meybe this pepal erned to much mony from cheredy like bisiness

Mr Khalid wrote:
why they need mony? they have many shop cheredy. meybe this pepal erned to much mony from cheredy like bisiness

More nonsense from khalid.

Somebody must be able to stop him writing this crap!

dave wrote:

Mr Khalid wrote: why they need mony? they have many shop cheredy. meybe this pepal erned to much mony from cheredy like bisiness

More nonsense from khalid. Somebody must be able to stop him writing this crap!

This is an open forum? I do not think it is Dave's open Forum? Why are you so aggressive? At least Khalid isn't. From what I can gather from Khalid's comment I agree with him. A lot of these charities are run by Executives on handsome salaries.

An examination of the latest published audited annual accounts for the Mencap organisation as a whole (2006/7) shows that the organisation had an income of £177,840,000, and expended £172,130,000 on all its activities, increasing the cash in the bank by some £5 million and ended the year 2006/7 with net assets of £22,801,000 (after taking account pension provisions for their staff). Now the ratepayers of Walthamstow are being asked to stump up more money because this enormous organisation has chosen to portray its local operations as running 'at a loss'. I'm sorry, but this is unacceptable. If these activities are so important, why can't Mencap pay for them out of the huge sums they have already raised over recent years from the state, businesses and the public at large? Is it reluctant to pay for these activities out of the massive funds it already holds because the national organisation of the charity knows that in fact funding these jobs is not the huge priority which the local Mencap organisation in Waltham Forest is suggesting?

this is a concern as i work with Waltham Forest People First and they help people with a learning disability and we don't know about our money. Groups are needed to elp and support people with a learing disability.

why does the council not want to help people with a learning disability?

they are more keen on knocking down buildings and building houses. This is not right

If only you knew what you were talking about Technomist, which is obviously why you hide behind an alias. Waltham Forest Mencap is affilliated to national Mencap in name only; NO FUNDING OR SUPPORT, AT ALL WHATSOEVER, IS PROVIDED. WF Mencap relies upon funding from the local authority and relevant funding bodies. The closure of services affect literally hundreds of people. Over 74 (with further generations to come) people with learning disabilities are losing the opportunity to train and work, thus affecting their quality of life and the lives of their families (many of whom are elderly). How short-sighted this all is and what a terrible shame.

i agree there Mark

we need to fight against any cuts

Roger wrote:

dave wrote:

Mr Khalid wrote: why they need mony? they have many shop cheredy. meybe this pepal erned to much mony from cheredy like bisiness

More nonsense from khalid. Somebody must be able to stop him writing this crap!

This is an open forum? I do not think it is Dave's open Forum? Why are you so aggressive? At least Khalid isn't. From what I can gather from Khalid's comment I agree with him. A lot of these charities are run by Executives on handsome salaries.

sod off roger, khallid is a 24 carat p*rick, who spouts **** after ****, perfect for the scum borough he lives in

If it is the case tyhat Mencap does not fund the local organnisation at all, I have to ask why not? I would also like to know why the local organisation goes under the name of Mencap if in fact it has nothing to do with the national organisation. Has Mencap WF gone to the national organisation and asked it for some money? There are £22m apparently sitting there as assets which were raised from the public, including people such as myself, for the express purpose of doing what the local Mencap is asking for money for.

(I don't hide behind an alias because of this issue. I always use Technomist as a blog name, actually it was adopted to differentiate me from someone who has the same name as me: would you feel more comfortable for if I used a name like, for instance, Mark, even if it wasn't my real one, and didn't alert anyone to the fact I was using an alias?)

I can assure you that I have no need to hide - my name is Mark and I apologise. It must be tricky with your name, there are a lot of them out there. As for the question that you raised, more fool you for not knowing what a charity does with the money that you donate, why bother at all? Thank you and good night.

Mark, I hope you have a good evening as well. There is nothing wrong with finding out about a mistake one has made. The fool is the person who makes mistakes and hides it from himself and others, so no-one can learn from it. Then we are doomed to see the same mistakes repeated.

But the point remains: there is a huge amount of money earmarked for this purpose, why does WF Mencap not go and apply for it from the people who have it, rather than putting themselves in the position of having to compete against so many other priorities the lottery or our broke local authority have? If they have done that already, hwy aren't we being told, and if so, could we be told why were they refused? If they did not ask Mencap for the money, why not? If I was a worker at WF Mencap getting praised to the skies by my boss, but was on the line, and the money was sitting in a bank having been put there for the purpose of doing the exact thing I was doing, I would expect my manager to have done all she could to secure the money. What has Diana Harrison been doing about this? She can't have only one strategy of running at a deficit and then putting in speculative grant applications to the council, surely?

I can't disagree with some of your statement/sentiment above, you obviously have a significantly greater insight into the "inside" workings of the subject matter than I. I am intrigued, to say the least. Please tell me more.
When all is said and done, this is about people, the one thing that seems to have been forgotten in the not to distant past.

I can't disagree with some of your statement/sentiment above, you obviously have a significantly greater insight into the inside workings of the subject matter than I. I am intrigued, to say the least. Please tell me more.
When all is said and done, this is about people, the one thing that seems to have been forgotten in the not to distant past.

md250 wrote:

Roger wrote:

dave wrote:

Mr Khalid wrote: why they need mony? they have many shop cheredy. meybe this pepal erned to much mony from cheredy like bisiness

More nonsense from khalid. Somebody must be able to stop him writing this crap!

This is an open forum? I do not think it is Dave's open Forum? Why are you so aggressive? At least Khalid isn't. From what I can gather from Khalid's comment I agree with him. A lot of these charities are run by Executives on handsome salaries.

sod off roger, khallid is a 24 carat p*rick, who spouts **** after ****, perfect for the scum borough he lives in

Wise words of MD250. Swearing again. It is an OPEN FORUM not a place for you to vent your anger

MD250 aint getting any and is taking out on the contributors of this site it seems!

Alfie wrote:
MD250 aint getting any and is taking out on the contributors of this site it seems!

ITS A OPEN FORUM TRUE, BUT ''KHALLID'' IS JUST A 12 YEAR OLD ON A WIND UP, AND HAS SPOILED A USEFUL AND ENTERTAINING MEDIUM, AND IF YOU CANNOT SEE THAT THEN YOU ARE A FOOL .

STUPID BOY!!!!!

md250 wrote:

Alfie wrote: MD250 aint getting any and is taking out on the contributors of this site it seems!

ITS A OPEN FORUM TRUE, BUT ''KHALLID'' IS JUST A 12 YEAR OLD ON A WIND UP, AND HAS SPOILED A USEFUL AND ENTERTAINING MEDIUM, AND IF YOU CANNOT SEE THAT THEN YOU ARE A FOOL . STUPID BOY!!!!!

I am a casual user MD250 and must say that I find his comments far less offensive than your consistant attacks on him and others. The racist remarks are unacceptable in this day and age and I suggest you moderate your tone or use your real name if you think that you are not breaking the law here. To hide behind MD250 and spew out such venom shows you for what you are.

Keith Halstead wrote:

md250 wrote:

Alfie wrote: MD250 aint getting any and is taking out on the contributors of this site it seems!

ITS A OPEN FORUM TRUE, BUT ''KHALLID'' IS JUST A 12 YEAR OLD ON A WIND UP, AND HAS SPOILED A USEFUL AND ENTERTAINING MEDIUM, AND IF YOU CANNOT SEE THAT THEN YOU ARE A FOOL . STUPID BOY!!!!!

I am a casual user MD250 and must say that I find his comments far less offensive than your consistant attacks on him and others. The racist remarks are unacceptable in this day and age and I suggest you moderate your tone or use your real name if you think that you are not breaking the law here. To hide behind MD250 and spew out such venom shows you for what you are.

thats if you can decifer them

sadly i do not like the way he and his ilk have hijacked the site

make of me as you wish

Mark, I agree its difficult to know what it going on. It would be easier for everyone to be able to comment constructively if WF Mencap had published a more recent copy of its annual review/accounts than the one with figures only up to 31 March 2006 which is on its website. This site has not been updated since 10 January 2007. It may be that the funders they are in an existing relationship with will have more information, but without greater transparency, it may be hard for other institutional donors who don't know WF Mencap well to come to the rescue. Sites like Intelligentgiving.co

m, which many donors consult when making funding decisions (its one place where information on the national Mencap finances can be initially accessed), do not provide the kinds of information on WF Mencap which large donors require these days.

I am well aware there are peoples' jobs at stake. Many people use on the services of this organisation. The management could help them by adopting a strategy for securing sources of income that has public accountability for donations and grants at its heart. Few organisations in the voluntary sector can expect grant applications to be successful automatically year on year- they have always to be prepared for the possibility that they have to seek further or matching funds from other sources. In this case, there is a large national body which provides services to WF Mencap's client group. They they might be able to turn to it for help. Rather than using emotive language which makes them appear to be castigating by implication donors who have previously been generous supporters, perhaps exploring the other possibilities would be a sensible and diplomatic course of action. An explanation as to what other steps have been taken and providing a detailed and reasoned case as to why they have been unsuccessful, may, in the long term, strengthen the hand of WF Mencap. Publicly blaming others for the predicament they are in is not a good starting point for any fundraising exercise: (Would you give money to an organisation that would appear likely to criticize you publicly in later years if you don't carry on doing, for instance so when your priorities or financial situation had altered? Given a limited budget, like the council has, and difficult choices of other, also very deserving causes to support, I'd find it unattractive.)

md250 wrote:

Alfie wrote:
MD250 aint getting any and is taking out on the contributors of this site it seems!

ITS A OPEN FORUM TRUE, BUT \'\'KHALLID\'\' IS JUST A 12 YEAR OLD ON A WIND UP, AND HAS SPOILED A USEFUL AND ENTERTAINING MEDIUM, AND IF YOU CANNOT SEE THAT THEN YOU ARE A FOOL .

STUPID BOY!!!!!

Yeah and he's winding you up! I find that funny!

Go on Mr Kahlid x

I agree with Mark and Dave, these people work hard for a living. What do you do for a living Khalid - you can't even spell! Roger, well what can I say - not much really other than get a life!

what im do is no sconge and eating tax mony from pepal. cheredy pepal work for self very big exacatives job pay meybe 100000000 pound for go metin in the suit

That's where you are wrong - are you living on another planet to us? I am still finding it very difficult to understand what you are trying to say! I am happy for the money I am taxed on to go to Mencap - rather there than most places it goes to!! You obviously don't feel like telling us what you do for a living then so I take it that's NOTHING!

Waltham Forest Mencap is one of those local voluntary organisations that, a number of years ago, made the strategic decision to move away from the concept of volunteers delivering a service to people with learning difficulties, replacing them with all paid staff. Ironically, if they had kept to that original ethos maybe such a financial blow wouldn't have had quite the same impact on the services they now offer. It would also have offered local people a valuable and rare opportunity to work alongside and learn from people with learning difficulties.

Sunia Barber wrote:
That's where you are wrong - are you living on another planet to us? I am still finding it very difficult to understand what you are trying to say! I am happy for the money I am taxed on to go to Mencap - rather there than most places it goes to!! You obviously don't feel like telling us what you do for a living then so I take it that's NOTHING!

I workself bisines man and payd the tax and no want giveded to this pepal funy bisinis makeded cheredy mony and put in self pocget? evry pond you giveded meybe only 1p go cheredy and othar goed to fat man big hose and by big car driveded to work? is good? i say is no good? no? and what you work? Clen the fish in market walthamstow? meybe? and clen self mouth befor the talk i say

He no Mr Khalid -- he really Chico Marx!

Mr Khalid wrote:

Sunia Barber wrote: That's where you are wrong - are you living on another planet to us? I am still finding it very difficult to understand what you are trying to say! I am happy for the money I am taxed on to go to Mencap - rather there than most places it goes to!! You obviously don't feel like telling us what you do for a living then so I take it that's NOTHING!

I workself bisines man and payd the tax and no want giveded to this pepal funy bisinis makeded cheredy mony and put in self pocget? evry pond you giveded meybe only 1p go cheredy and othar goed to fat man big hose and by big car driveded to work? is good? i say is no good? no? and what you work? Clen the fish in market walthamstow? meybe? and clen self mouth befor the talk i say

I sense some jealousy hear Khalid, am I right? What is wrong with people that as you put it "Clen the fish in market Walthamstow?" I take it you are trying to say Clean the fish in Walthamstow Market!! At least they work for a living the same as the people that are losing their jobs at this charity whom have wroked extremely hard at their jobs. I bet you have never given to charity - so how can you comment!