IS IT acceptable that the council gave out no cash for Black History Month because apparently no community groups approached it for funding?
The line of questioning from people who attended last week's full council meeting seemed to suggest that they had been informed that the budget had been slashed to zero, so it is no wonder no requests were received. Even so, is it clear that there is passionate support in the borough to celebrate Black History Month and given the fact that, in previous years, aforum was able to establish which projects would receive money, it seems bizarre that this was not repeated this year.
Furthermore, when the council was approached by the charity BTWSC to hold an event - In Search of Achievers Closer to Home - in the council chamber, it did not even offer to host the evening for free and, in fact, charged the organisation more than £100 for the privilege.
To add insult to injury, when under fire for the lack of Black History Month funding, the council apparently cheekily claimed the credit for BTWSC's event.
The lackadaisical approach from Harrow Council rightly raises questions about the authority's commitment to such a cultural project and the situation looks worse when its efforts here are compared with the enthusiasm and cash available for other social and religious celebrations.
