Part 2: Hythe Against Crime

Hythe has recently suffered a spate of break-ins to its shops and robberies from its cafes.

On May 1st 2016 we first wrote about a company known as Hythe Against Crime. At that time the Accounts, according to Companies House, showed the company had £32,506.45.

As of the 1st August 2019, the company shows that its officers are:

• Former Folkestone & Hythe District Councillor Alan John Ewart James – Secretary

• Captain Louis Edwin Regis BELCOURT – Director – who recently passed away

• Nicholas Hamilton MEURICE – Director

The latest set of accounts lodged at Companies House show the amount held by the company was £31,956.

At present Hythe has no functioning CCTV.  The Town Council as we understand is paying in excess of £30,000 to BT each year for CCTV. It is fiscally irresponsible to spend public money on a service which one is not receiving.  This is equivalent to £2 on the Hythe precept for Hythe ratepayers.

Perhaps a solution is to ask Hythe Against Crime to release this money to the Town Council to pay for/or towards the costs of a functioning CCTV system.

There appears to be no sound reason for Hythe Against Crime to continue holding the money they have, as they have not used it for the last three years. Much of the money the company received came by way of Grants from the public purse. Is now the time for the Directors and the Secretary of the company to be charitable and demonstrate how they would like to help the Town Council reduce Hythe ratepayers precept charges by £2? After all “every little helps.”

The Shepwayvox Team

Journalism for the People NOT the Powerful