York LGO Blog and Lancashire CC

On 15th Dec 2000 when I was employed as a social worker for Lancashire County Council (LCC) I attended a meeting of staff, clients, their families etc, subject: home closures on a site known as Fylde Comunity School near Blackpool, Lancs.
Hilton Dawson, then MP for Lancaster, Fylde and Wyre attended as did the LCC Consultant, Ed Nixon. The staff union involved, UNISON, declined to send a rep.
The meeting was well attended but astonishingly I was the only field social worker in attendance.
Some in LCC planned to seize 134 acres of land, evict families from their homes on that site telling them they had no tenants' rights, close a working farm, a full time school, dismiss 46 staff members illegally and close 4 homes for disturbed adolescent boys.
I said in that meeting, "You can't do that" and I was taken to one side and told, "You're right, keep quiet, or else".
That was later sent to me via senior managers in a letter.

Hilton Dawson as my MP ignored my pleas for help.

I followed all the proper procedures and policies for complaining within LCC (I had 4 clients on that site who had nowhere else to live if it closed as it was doing, ad hoc and illegally. Then boys were all in care to the Local Authority as were all other boys on site, approx. 100). LCC had no foster carers or field support workers and on 21 April 01 I wrote to the Social Services Committee warning that something would happen if the boys were evicted into the community unmonitored.

LCC whistle blowing contact, Clive Giddings, had told me I would be disciplined and sacked for gross misconduct if I continued to complain about the Fylde closure.
My protected disclosure was not protected.

I finally surrendered my post at the end of Aug 01 after being bullied etc for 8 months by management intent on forcing me out on instruction from HQ Preston. Tony Bradhsaw, Pat Allen and Gillian Armstrong were the worst offenders then acting on instruction from David Fairclough, then Head of Human Resources for LCC.

On 30th June 01 my predictaion as to a serious evenmt happened. 2 of the boys from Fylde discharged into the community where no one knew where they were, had recruited a teenaged gang and murdered a pensioner, Sheila Bridge. (see Internet)
I ha dtaken my complaint to the LGO, York office and was assigned an investigator, Roger Barham. We got on well and sometimes just chatted on the phone. LCC had told him that they would not submit documents if he was to send them to me. R Barham said that the Sec of State would ensure their compliance. I eventually got the documents.

I was to analyse the evidence in the documents and compile a report which I did.
By then I had discovered that Ed Nixon had lied to all staff, clients and their families in the "Consultation". He had said in a letter to all, "I am Director of Atlantic Children's Trust. I am independent and impartial".
E Nixon was a friend of senior manager, Sue Mitchell and Tony Morrissey (both child care) and was unemployed which is why they recruited him.
Also, I checked with Companies House. His company did not exist; he had bought the name from the Exchange and Mart. (False CV at least, criminal offence.)
D Fairclough as Head of Human Resources had compiled the letter with Bob Gower, another senior child care manager in HQ for Ed Nixon to send out. They knew what they were doing. Naturally I have all that in writing as I ahve every last document referred to in this.

I concnetrated my report on points of law, Local Government Law and human rights etc and noted Case Law.
R Barham was encouraging, he rang saying he couldn't help me write my report but could say whether I was on the right track or not.
I told him what I was concentrating on and he said we'd get LCC for maladministration at least.

I was pleased with my report. It was 12 pages handwritten then, since typed for clarity, and I submitted it early Sept 01 but heard nothing.
At the end on Oct 01 I received a card from R Barham saying that pressure of work prevented him dealing with the case.
On Christmas Eve of 2001 I received a letter from R Barham, no report, and it was nothing like he'd ever written to me previously. It was almost 5 years later that I learned he had not written that letter (report, call it what you will), Ian Young of LCC legal dept had written it for him, Barham had simply signed it.

In May 2002 I discovered that the March 01 Committee Meeting Minutes for LCC had been altered in that month of May 02. They then included the legal recommendations I had said they should have made re Fylde. They were rewritten to allow senior managers to distance themsleves from the corporate manslaughter of Mrs Bridge.
(My letter to Ian Fisher Head of Legal dept LCC saying they should be charged with corporate manslaughter started a whole new aspect to this, anyone can aske what that was.)

In July 2002 I discovered, after a court ordered release of files to me, some children's files had been altered by P Allen, T Bradshaw and G Armstrong to try and discredit my work as a social worker (child protection.) The altered files were detrimental to the familes and children as well as me.
The LGO investigator, Colin Oxley, chum of R Barham did nothing although I reported the Minutes and the files issues.
The children were all minors and had no one to speak for them.
In 2002 I had learned of Judicial Reviews and applied to the High Court. Judge Hooper gave me permission for an oral hearing which would have been heard July 2002.
He said he couldn't order the re-opening but he could order a proper investigation into the closures, sackings, evictions etc.

I was actively prevented from attending that oral hearing.
And that's when the corruption was further compunded and continues to be so today. Feb 5th 2007.

Readers can know what I didn't know until the end of 2002 and that was , "Who was legal advisor for LCC on those closures leading to corporate manslaughter? Cherie Blair.

In 2003 I also had cogent evidence that Pat Allen for LCC worked with a false CV and swore in Family Courts High Division that she had qualifications that did not exist. Perjury to pervert the course of justice for vulnerable families.
P Allen had been a cleaner in a children's home and had sexual relations with senior manager, including D Fairclough hence her rapid rise through to management when she could scarcely write her name and address.
The LGO in York ignored all that cogent evidence.
But the Ombudsman at the time until Sept 05) was Pauline Thomas.
I traced Mrs Thomas in June 06 (she retired in Sept 05) and she agreed to see me. (I was suitably vague in my letters).
Mrs Thomas knew nothing about Fylde or the children's files or the Committee Meeting Minutes.

R Barham had conspired to pervert the course of justice with Fishger and Young at least from LCC. Was he paid to do that? He will not deny it. PAYOLA. Usual for LCC.
The Director of the time, Pauline Oliver was advised to take early retirement in 2002 which she did to protect her pension.

Anne Seex succeeded Mrs Thomas and much is known about Mrs Seex.
But I know something else. Our paths crossed on a personal matter in 1998. She did not win.

Hilton Dawson resigned as MP for Lancaster and Anne Sacks quietly slipped into his place. She lost in the election.
Judy Deering, solicitor for LCC working on the perjury with P Allen was advised to take early retirement in 2003 when it became known that I knew that she was also woprking as a bar manager in a night club in Bolton, (Temple Bar) in breach of her contract for LCC.
P Allen is well protected. She would undoubtedly seek revenge if 'allowed to go'.

The land was seized illegally, all 134 acres of it. The Freemasons were involved: greed, money, land grabbing, corrupt police and murder. Traits of those in that silly boys' club.

Every last statement of fact as above can be proven via documentary evidence. It is still safe despite collective attempts to take it from me. All public interest.

Carol Woods Lancaster.