WITH a bid having been accepted by Cadence Festivals Limited for the sale of Tyldesley Top Chapel, it seems there was little or no control on the award of monies to fund the previous purchase of the building.

For months I have been seeking information from councillors and officials with little avail.

To great fanfare it was reported that £188,000 had been awarded to Cadence Cafe CIC to purchase the chapel.

Under Lord Peter Smith’s ‘Deal’ the facility was to be purchased with this public money for the good of the community.

In the end Cadence Cafe CIC seems to have relinquished ownership of its purchase to Cadence Festivals Limited, a private limited company with a sole shareholder.

There seems to have been little or no conditions placed on the award and ownership of the building has been transferred from a CIC, with all its community safeguards, to a private company that is free to dispose of it as it wishes.

There seems to have been a complete misunderstanding of the way corporate business works, which I believe led to a failure to spot the risk in awarding huge sums of money and the need to identify and close loopholes that could lead to situations like this.

I repeatedly pointed out to all concerned that registering the property as an asset of community value would not prevent the sale of the property to whoever Cadence Festivals Limited wanted.

Following the award to Cadence CIC there was no scope to make a further award to a community group.

All the council officers could do was put a charge on the property to recoup the money they had given away, but only after the property was sold.

The taxpayer is now not only out of pocket to the tune of tens of thousands of pounds but is also being told by the council all that is left is the hope of the new owner respecting the Tyldesley residents in what their plans are for the building.

The residents have been let down.

Richard Short

Chairman

Wigan Conservative Federation