Liam Robinson said Colette Goulding remains suspended by the party
Cllr Colette Goulding
Links between a suspended Labour councillor and a charity commission investigation are “very concerning” according to the leader of Liverpool Council. It was revealed earlier in April that a statutory inquiry had been opened by the Charity Commission into Dovecot and Princess Drive Community Association.
Colette Goulding, Labour councillor for West Derby Muirhead, was chair of the charity which has had its bank accounts frozen owing to what was described as “financial and governance concerns.” She was also a registered director at The Big Help Group between 2023 and 2024 – the umbrella organisation to which the Big Help Project falls under.
This has been subject to its own case since December 2023. Cllr Goulding was suspended by Liverpool Labour last December.
Cllr Liam Robinson, group leader and leader of the city council, said an investigation remained open into her links to the organisations. In April, the ECHO revealed Charity Commission is assessing the links between the Dovecot charity and the Big Help Project.
Dovecot and Princess Drive Community Association which registered in 1997 – previously known as the Drive – was set up to benefit the community by bringing together statutory authorities, voluntary organisations and residents in a common effort to advance education, protect health and relieve poverty.
On Companies House, the charity is listed as an officer of Big Help Asset Management, alongside fellow charity Big Help Project.
In December 2023, the Charity Commission launched an inquiry into the organisation over concerns around trustee decision making, potential unauthorised trustee benefit and unmanaged conflicts of interest.
According to its last set of accounts for the previous financial year, the chair of the organisation is named in the trustees’ report as Colette Goulding, Labour councillor for West Derby Muirhead. Cllr Goulding, who is facing calls to resign over her non-attendance at city council meetings, was a registered director at The Big Help Group between 2023 and 2024.
Her partner and former city councillor, Peter Mitchell, was chief executive of the Big Help Project and listed as a trustee at Dovecot and Princess Drive according to the 2024 accounts. It was said Mr Mitchell resigned that post in March 2024.
Leader of Liverpool City Council Liam Robinson(Image: Danny Lawson/PA Wire)
Addressing Cllr Goulding’s position, Cllr Robinson said: “Well, quite clearly you wouldn’t expect me to talk in a lot of detail of where we’ve still got an ongoing investigation. I think it’s fair to say that, yes, some of the things that we are reading clearly are very concerning.
“That’s part and parcel of that investigation. That is as much I can say at this moment in time, but we are very much taking all of those things strongly on board.”
In an accounts statement signed by Cllr Goulding in January last year, trustees of Dovecot and Princess Drive were responsible for the management and administration of the charity’s property and funds in accordance with the 1997 trust deed, which includes “keeping proper accounting records.”
As part of its inquiry, the Charity Commission is appealing to the local community to come forward with any information they may have about who is running the charity.