Girl Guides Gift Aid fraudster loses civic awards

A Girl Guides volunteer who was involved in a scheme which defrauded the taxpayer out of nearly £500,000 has been stripped of a civic award.

Jean Barnbrook, alongside her older sister, Sara, "manipulated" fellow volunteers into signing off fraudulent Gift Aid claims, Leeds Crown Court was told last month.

The pair, both of Templar Lane, in Leeds, spent the cash they raked in on luxuries, clothes and home improvements.

Jean Barnbrook, who was jailed for 30 months after pleading guilty to one charge of money laundering, has now had a Volunteer of the Year award she was given by Leeds City Council in 2017 revoked.

The award was handed out as part of a ceremony to celebrate unsung heroes across the city.

Separately, the 51-year-old has also been stripped of a second award from the council for her work with a youth group in east Leeds.

A spokesperson for the local authority said: "In light of recent events, the council has made the decision to revoke the Compassionate City Award and the Highly Commended Award previously presented to Jean Barnbrook as the actions of this individual do not reflect the spirit of the awards."

Councillor Mark Dobson, a member of the Garforth and Swillington Independents group, welcomed the news.

Dobson, who said he had lobbied the council to revoke the awards, said: "Leeds is incredibly fortunate in having a whole range of volunteers in many areas who devote their time, free of charge, to helping others and it is right that the city recognises their efforts.

"To have allowed Barnbrook to have retained her awards would have been a slap in the face for all those individuals who have genuinely made a difference in the city."

Sara Barnbrook, who had pleaded guilty to one charge of cheating the public purse, was jailed for three years after being sentenced alongside her sister.

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