CPE local shambles
District society pulls plug on education courses as part of long-running power struggle.
District society pulls plug on education courses as part of long-running power struggle.
Chartered accountants in South-West London face losing easy access toing power struggle. continuing professional education courses, following a power struggle in their local district society.
At tonight’s agm, the district’s main committee is set to dissolve the sub-committee set up to run courses for members after a long-running spat over the level of its independence.
SWLCA chairman Nilesh Patel criticised the courses committee for its independent direction and falling levels of income. He said the main committee had attempted to discuss falling income from CPE courses over the last few years. Failure to resolve the matter led to the courses being shelved until after the agm.
Paul Druckman, set to become the society’s chairman tonight, said the courses are no longer creating any added value. The figures are not known for 1997, but Druckman said they are ‘very much break-even at the moment’. Course net income was #6,736 in 1995 and #3,761 in 1996. ‘You can’t run any organisation where there is a loss and we don’t know about it. You can’t have something out of control,’ he added.
Druckman said the key to the debate was the main committee’s ‘responsibility over the sub-committee.’ He added: ‘The fact that they were considered to be independent was deemed unacceptable. When issues were addressed with them there was a lot of negative feedback.’ The SWLCA is keen to re-establish control and improve communication with the courses committee. ‘It is part of the SWLCA and I don’t think that it is its perception,’ said Druckman.
LSCA chairman Nick Hamilton said he will support the main committee in its actions. ‘We can’t have a breakaway group,’ said Hamilton.
Course committee chairman Trevor Staplehurst claimed the main committee attempted to finance costly institute activities at the association through course income.
He said: ‘It was so embarrassed with its financial problems that it tried to pass them on to the course committee.’
A new courses committee is expected to emerge after the agm with a more profit-orientated direction. Druckman said the main committee will try to engage as many course committee members in the project.