WIGAN council has put a temporary block on the sale of Tyldesley Top Chapel after listening to residents’ concerns.

The potential sale of the Grade II listed building on Astley Street was being investigated after online real estate portal Rightmove placed it online for auction.

The building had a £150,000 price tag, but had a purchase price of £50,000 in September 2015 causing residents to question the legality of the sale.

Alison Mckenzie-Folan, deputy chief executive of Wigan Council, said: “After listening to residents' concerns about the sale of Tyldesley Top Chapel, Wigan Council has placed a moratorium on the building.

“This means the building cannot be sold for at least six weeks - giving the council and community group’s time to discuss how the building can be best utilised for local residents.”

The building was bought by Cadence Festivals Limited in 2015 after it was awarded £188,200 via Wigan Council’s Deal for Communities Investment Fund to use the building as a multi-purpose community hub.

The property has now been removed on the Rightmove website by the agent despite being due to be put up for auction tomorrow, Tuesday May 17.

Alison Mckenzie-Folan, added: “The council stopped all Communities Investment funding months ago and we are investigating and potentially recovering funds that have already been passed over.”

Community club Cadence Festivals Limited was set up as a pop-up café in 2012 to give young people an opportunity to learn and play music and get involved in other performing arts.

The Journal attempted to contact representatives from Cadence Festivals Limited but received no response.