by Nick Lillitos
nlillitos@thekmgroup.co.uk

Some £300 a day was spent on a consultant’s fee in an effort to raise funding for Maidstone Museum’s new East Wing – now believed to be running hundreds of thousands of pounds in the red.

Insiders estimate the project could eventually end up costing £4.2 million against the initial projection of £3.7m, though Maidstone Borough Council would not confirm the figure.

The source was speaking as council cabinet members approved a full review into the delayed East Wing project estimated to be facing an overspend of £500,000.

Two fundraising consultants had been engaged by the council to help boost funding for the St Faith’s Street library which has already received £2m of lottery money.

More than £93,000 was spent on engaging expert assistance, with the first appointment reportedly paid £1,500 a month, plus expenses, on a part-time basis. The position was replaced by Nick Ward who charged £300 a day, plus expenses.

Mr Ward, who now runs Friday People in Maidstone which helps get unemployed young people back into work, told the KM his fee of £300 a day was correct but needed qualifying.

"I was brought in on a short-term basis for about a year from June 2009 to June 2010.

“In that time I did not work every day, maybe three days a week sometimes, and I donated zero cost days to the museum.

"Looking back our time would have been more effective in raising funding if we had started before actual construction work began.

"With every capital project, a funding campaign requires lots of advance preparation and lead-in time. We were engaged with very little development time.
“The over-run looks quite appalling and there was no suggestion of any over-run when I left.”