Dr Gifty Edila
Retired barrister who conducted the independent investigation into the council's handling of the Woking FC stadium development. Found procedural failures, secret dealings, conflicts of interest, and a lack of transparency. Concluded that council officers serving as KCSC directors while negotiating the GolDev loan was 'driving a coach and horses through the Nolan principles.'
Key Actions
- Conducted the independent investigation into the council's GolDev and Woking FC dealings
- Found that council officers were KCSC directors while negotiating the GolDev loan — a direct conflict of interest
- Concluded that the arrangement violated the Nolan principles of public life
- Identified procedural failures, secret dealings, and lack of transparency
Details
Dr Gifty Edila is a retired barrister who was appointed to conduct an independent investigation into Woking Borough Council's handling of the Woking FC stadium development and the GolDev loan arrangement.
Her investigation found procedural failures, secret dealings, conflicts of interest, and a lack of transparency in how the council had negotiated and offered the £250 million revolving loan facility to GolDev Woking Limited.
Most significantly, Edila found that council officers Peter Bryant (Monitoring Officer) and Leigh Clarke (Section 151 Officer) were simultaneously directors of Kingfield Community Sports Centre Limited (KCSC) — which owned the stadium land — while negotiating the GolDev loan on behalf of the council. Leigh Clarke's husband was also a minor shareholder of Woking FC.
Edila concluded that this arrangement was 'driving a coach and horses through the Nolan principles' — the seven principles of public life that govern standards in public office. Her findings contributed to the broader picture of governance failure that the Grant Thornton Public Interest Report would later confirm.
Sources
- Grant Thornton Public Interest Report— Grant Thornton / Woking Borough Council