On Friday (September 6) the Audit Committee will discuss the circumstances surrounding a one-off payment of nearly £158,000 given to Theatr Brycheiniog in Brecon last year.

In August 2018, a payment of £157,920 was given to the theatre to maintain the asset.

At the time the chairs of Scrutiny and Audit committees were asked not to call-in the decision made by portfolio holder for highways, recycling and assets, Phyl Davies (Conservative – Blaen Hafren).

Audit chairman, Cllr John Morris (Liberal Democrat – Crickhowell), expressed concerns at the time as no information was given to explain why the payment was needed.

On September 12, 2018, the Audit Committee authorised Cllr Morris and vice-chairman, independent member, John Brautigam, to investigate.

This Friday, September 6, they will report their findings to the committee.

This includes:

  • The Theatre has a history of poor management and accounting practices.
  • Without the funds Theatr Brycheiniog would have folded.

In that event Powys County Council (PCC) could have been liable to pay back a £1.6 million grant from the Arts Council Wales which had been given over 20 years ago.

Cllr Morris and Mr Brautigam were also concerned that the portfolio holder for Leisure and Culture, Cllr Rachel Powell (Independent – Beguildy), had not been included in the August 2018 report.

Cllr Morris and Mr Brautigam said: “Scrutiny chairs were put under considerable pressure to agree not to call in the decision.

“Insufficient information was available to make a proper assessment. We consider this to be unjustified and unnecessary.

“No checks appear to have been made that the £157,920 had been spent on defects.

“Documents obtained from the theatre after the payment showed significant amounts of the sum claimed went on decoration and refurbishment.

“There is also evidence that some expenditure was to cure dilapidations resulting from poor or incomplete maintenance.

“In spite of the additional money, there was no evidence that the one-off payment was sufficient to ensure that the theatre continues on an ongoing basis.

“Much of the problem has risen due to departmental conflicts between Property (Service) and Leisure in managing the building.”

The pair have come up with a list of eight recommendations which include:

  • All council properties to be under the supervision of the Property Service which should have corporate landlord status
  • Any future requests for payments of similar nature need to have documents to justify the action.

They added that when investigating the matter, they had met some resistance.

Theatr Brycheiniog company was incorporated in November 1989, operating as the Brecon Guildhall Theatre Ltd until November 2008.

It is a registered charity and in 1997 took out a 28-year full lease on purpose built premises owned by PCC.

£1.6 million to build it came from the Arts Council Wales.

The theatre was expected to fund any repairs to the building and paid £100 annual rent.