Thatcham's Priory to be sold off for housing

"It’s not worth the money this council has spent on it.”

THATCHAM’s Priory is to be sold off for housing for around £850,000, still leaving the town council in debt.

The Conservative-controlled town council voted to sell the Grade II-listed building to an unnamed buyer at a recent meeting. It was also revealed that the building would be converted into a single house.

Speaking on the decision Roger Croft (Con, Thatcham South and Crookham) said he was delighted the Priory would be returning to its original use.

The move is a nail in the coffin for the Liberal Democrat plan to refurbish the building for community use.

The two parties have clashed over the project since the Lib Dems purchased the building from West Berkshire Council for £400,000 in 2009. It has sat empty and fallen into disrepair, until work began last year.

At a meeting last month it was revealed that the refurbishment costs had risen by £55,000, taking the total cost of the project to £885,000.

The town council has borrowed £260,000 out of a possible £760,000 of government money towards the refurbishment. It has spent around £630,000 to date, but has not withdrawn additional government funds. It has paid around £333,000 from its reserves to cover the cost so far.

The Conservatives are also borrowing £500,000 from West Berkshire Council to finish the project. The town council may also have to pay the district council a share of the sale price because of a clawback clause.

Speaking at a meeting in December, the leader of the Lib Dem’s town council opposition, Lee Dillon (Thatcham North) asked how the town council would repay the district council £500,000.

“From the sale,” Mr Croft replied.

The town council is set to lose £600,000 from the sale. The estimated cost of selling, including expected clawback costs, legal fees and penalties on early loan repayments, is £1.4m.

Mr Croft said that the Priory was “a significant loss to Thatcham residents. Whether that is recognised now or 25 years time. It’s not worth the money this council has spent on it.”

He said that the Priory was not likely to be sold for six months and that measures were being taken to secure the building during this period.

The sale will also see the police and the Thatcham Parochial Almshouse Charity evicted from the hub, which lies within the Priory grounds. Both have a six-month notice period.

The police have 24/7 access to the hub, which they use regularly as a base to take statements from Thatcham residents.

Speaking at a meeting last week, Mr Croft proposed that notice be served with the proviso that the hub could still be used until the Priory was sold.

He added that he wanted to see the police remain on site for as long as possible and suggested offering free use of the site until it was sold.

Mr Dillon voted against selling the building and said that he did not want to put the town council at any financial risk surrounding penalty repayments and the clawback clause.

The work is expected to be completed by mid February.