Corrupt finance director who stole over £6k from Halton Hospice jailed

Nigel Garner spent a large sum of his ill-gotten gains on payments towards a flash Range Rover and the insurance he needed for it while working in a highly trusted position at Halton Haven Hospice last year.

The hospice, based on Barnfield Avenue in Runcorn, is a charity which provides palliative care to terminally ill patients.

It is partially funded by the NHS, but has to make up a large majority of its £2.4million-a-year funding costs purely through fundraising and donations.

Chester Crown Court heard at his sentencing on Tuesday how Garner, of Park Lane, Higher Walton, began his role at the hospice as director of finance, transformation and sustainability in April 2023.

At the time, the defendant was earning approximately £50,000 a year from the job title and was in a trusted position of power.

He appeared before the courts after pleading guilty to one count of fraud by abuse of position.

Prosecuting, Jane Morris said there were no initial concerns relating to Garner or his work, but this started to change in the months leading up to December of that year.

“There were some concerns about his work performance and his personal and family life, which a colleague had been supporting him with,” Ms Morris said, adding that the defendant had lied about matters relating to issues with his home life.

A meeting was arranged and due to these concerns – unrelated to the fraud offence – and on January 4 he was dismissed.

Garner’s dismissal led to an internal investigation being carried out, which then shone light on the fraudulent payments he had been making through the hospice to fund his own personal finances, the court heard.

Ms Morris went on to explain how the finance officer of spends at the charity, William Parlane, had raised concerns about spends the defendant had made, and how the finances had been managed during that time.

The investigation that followed exposed multiple fraudulent payments made through the hospice by Garner to the total sum of £6,918.86.

These included a £2,000 deposit paid on a £50,000 Range Rover, followed by two car finance payments for the vehicle of £901.96 each.

The sentencing was held at Chester Crown Court (Image: NQ)

This was despite the offender knowing that he was not entitled to a company car as part of his employment.

The prosecutor went on to list a sum of money going out to the jewellery brand Beaverbrooks, and a further payment of £571.76 to pay for the defendant’s car insurance.

Three payments were made to fund a storage unit to the total sum of £480.

Garner even stole £750 from the charity to pay for a solicitor he had instructed to do some legal work.

Other payments included £39.56 spent at Halfords, £374 paid to AO.com, £18.36 paid to Screwfix and £147.35 spent at the Jolly Thresher pub in Lymm.

Garner, who was also previously managing director of a successful Runcorn-based finance company, made the hospice liable to pay the remaining finance on his £50,000 Range Rover after his dismissal from the charity.

Fortunately, the car company was understanding and did not enforce this.

Explaining how the defendant was able to pass off the fraudulent payments, Ms Morris said that the charity’s finance officer, Mr Parlane, received an email from Garner in November 2023 requesting authority in writing to sign documents on behalf of the hospice.

Garner was then made co-signatory for the Hospice, but only for items that were required to be bought for the charity.

On another occasion, when the hospice was having work done to have lights fitted around the premises, the defendant approached Mr Parlane and told him he needed his signature to sign a document.

He then took copies of his details and a picture of Mr Parlane’s licence, which he then used to carry out some of his fraudulent purchases.

When interviewed by Cheshire Police, the defendant disclosed that he had planned to repay the money back to the hospice.

In an impact statement read out to the court, a member of staff at Halton Haven Hospice said: “Mr Garner preyed on the good will of his colleagues. His manipulative manner has cost the hospice dearly.

“There has been an incredible amount of work-based stress. Staff have given up extra hours to investigate all the discrepancies, and we cannot stress the amount of work that went into this investigation.

Garner won a Warrington Guardian inspiration award back in 2013 for his work at a previous finance company (Image: NQ)

“The management of day-to-day finances was put in jeopardy. The hospice had to stop all recruitment.”

As well as jeopardising the finances and the reputation of the charity, the hospice faced its biggest setback from the destruction caused by Garner’s greed by having to postpone the completion of two new clinics.

This setback last year, the court heard, means an extra £15,000 to £20,000 will need to be spent to complete the clinics due to the soar in costs of materials and labour in the last year.

The member of staff continued: “It has been a most stressful and upsetting situation. He evoked pity with malice.”

Defending, Jeremy Rawson stated that his client has a clean record and is at ‘low risk of re-offending’.

He told of how Garner is currently unemployed and has repaid the £6,918 back to the hospice.

“He is devastated by what he has done” Mr Rawson added.

Before sentencing, recorder Eric Lamb said: “This was an enterprise that was doomed to fail.

“I conclude that this was a sophisticated act on your behalf, and a matter which involved a degree of planning.”

Addressing the harm caused to the charity, Mr Lamb continued: “The level of loss caused to the charity was just under £6,900.

“But the impact has been to cost the hospice dearly, at a time when every penny counts.

“Day-to-day finances were put in jeopardy, and as a result, the hospice was required to put a stop to recruitment, and allow only critical spending due to fear of running out of funds.

“The charity was already financially struggling, and you have placed further strain on it.”

The defendant was sentenced to 20 months in prison.