Three new councillors have resigned from a town council accused of infighting, mismanagement and having a ‘sinister culture’.

Helen Burr, Lizzie Martin and Matt Nethercott have all quit Woodstock Town Council less than two months after they were elected. 

Their resignations come after Mayor John Banbury resigned at the end of October after just four months in the role.

One resident described the council as having a 'sinister culture' when it should be focussing on "really big challenges, the growing dominance of Blenheim and the development of 'London-Oxford' airport’."

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Following multiple allegations of mismanagement, concerns have now been raised that the process of grant allocations is not fair or transparent.

Woodstock Youth Club receives about 30 to 38 per cent of all council grant funding every year and was again awarded 36 per cent of the grants this year.

Draft minutes of the meeting on October 15 - which were published yesterday after contact by the Oxford Mail - show four for, two against and two abstained without giving names.

Three councillors have affiliations to the club, although it has been reported that they declared this at the start of the meeting.

A resident said: "Woodstock Youth Club is open two hours every Thursday evening during term time.

"Last year while registered as a charity it declared in its March 2023 accounts an income of £19,597 versus outgoings of £9,532 – meaning that for every hour the youth club was open it was costing £120 an hour.

"Why does Woodstock Youth Club require 38 per cent of the council grants this year when they have £10,000 in the bank?

"What does a youth club which is charging subs spend this amount of money on?"

Cllr Martin, who has resigned, was also said to be frustrated that she had not been able to raise the issue of grant allocation at a meeting scheduled for September 30 as it was brought forward a day at the last minute, meaning she could not attend.

She had also wanted to highlight that the earlier declarations of interest were not discussed before the grant allocation was voted through.

Town clerk Valentin Lavdakov said: "I understand the concerns about grant allocations. The council’s intent is to support valuable community services that benefit residents.

"However, the council take concerns about transparency, fund usage, or allocation processes seriously. That said, the council cannot comment on the Youth Club’s financial situation."

He added: "The council operates within a democratic framework where decisions are made collectively.

"While disagreements or differing viewpoints may arise - something common in any council - this does not signify a negative or obstructive culture."

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This summer Woodstock town councillor Sharone Parnes lost his case after taking the authority he serves on to the small claims court this summer over alleged data breaches.

He had previously described his fellow councillors as operating like a "street gang".

Two unnamed councillors faced West Oxfordshire District Council's standards committee over allegations of breaching the council's code of conduct earlier this year.

It was revealed that former mayor Nick Manby-Brown used his own money to pay for the authority's Christmas gifts after concerns were raised about using taxpayer cash.

A report presented at a meeting in April said the previous administration breached financial standards by giving away half of the civic budget to one of the four town churches.

The request should have been taken to full council for agreement.

And Labour parliamentary candidate Veronica Oakeshott said she was "astonished" to hear at the AGM Mr Manby-Brown accusing councillors of being so focused on opposing housing that they forgot to negotiate developers contributions.

Woodstock Youth Club did not respond.