Call for new Gilstrap trustees

12:45pm Fri Feb 03, 2012

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Newark Town Council is calling for new trustees to be appointed to the charity responsible for the Gilstrap Centre.

At an extraordinary meeting on Wednesday members said talks should be held with Newark and Sherwood District Council about the town council becoming trustees of the Gilstrap Knight Charitable Trust.

The current trustees are the members of the district's general purposes committee, which has led to accusations of a conflict of interest.

The idea was supported by five Independent and two Labour councillors but opposed by seven Conservatives. The mayor, Mr Bryan Richardson (Ind) used his casting vote to push it through.

A two-page document on the future of the building put forward by the town council leader, Mrs Gill Dawn, was agreed after Mr Richardson again used his casting vote.

The document says the town council is disappointed that Nottinghamshire County Council appears to be holding Newark and Sherwood to ransom by making the sale of the former RHP sports ground conditional on its purchase of the Gilstrap Centre.

The town council says the sports ground should be sold at market value at the earliest opportunity, with no strings attached.

It has asked for a clear financial position about the charity so the trustees can make a decision based on full and accurate financial information.

The leader of the Conservative group Mr Max Cope presented an alternative that was defeated by Mr Richardson's casting vote.

It sought assurances that the centre and adjoining land should be kept in public ownership to provide public services to Newark.

It asked for the full accounts of the Gilstrap trust and called on the district council to relinquish a loan debt to the trust in return for the proper sale and asset transfer.

It wanted the town council to tell the district council it recognised that the Charity Commissioners had the final say on the trust's accounts and proper use of assets, and urged continued support to the district council in delivering new and modern leisure facilities in Newark.

At the start of the meeting standing orders were suspended to allow the deputy chief executive of the district council, Mrs Kirsty Cole, and Mr Roger Jackson, the cabinet member for leisure, to explain the council's proposals to sell the centre.

Mr Jackson said they needed to cut spending.

He said they were reviewing leisure and heritage facilities, which included the Gilstrap Centre.

He started to explain the council's plans for a new Civil War-themed museum in the Old Magnus Buildings but was cut short by Mr Richardson who told him they were there to discuss the Gilstrap Centre, not the new museum project.

Mrs Cole said it was important people were aware of the full picture, which was why information about the museum project was included in the presentation.

Mr Cope said he did not have a particular problem with the Gilstrap becoming a new register office, and said it would mean the building remained in public ownership.

Mrs Cole said income from the charity investments was £1,297 for the year ending March 11 and the district council was having to subsidise the Gilstrap by £65,000 a year.

She said the council could not continue with that level of payment.

She said if the centre was sold to the county council for a register office it would keep a vital service in Newark and keep the building in public ownership.

She said the county council had agreed that the charity would have the option to buy back the building if they no longer needed it.

Mrs Cole said the money paid for the building would be kept by the Gilstrap trust as capital, but income from it could be used by it for a range of options including enhancing the interpretation of the castle and creating a bespoke Gilstrap room in the new museum.

Mr Kevin Clayton said the Gilstrap was part of the heritage of Newark. He said the wish of the county council to buy the building was not enough to warrant a sale.

Mrs Marika Tribe said it was important people realised the district council could not benefit from the sale of the centre as the money would go to the trust.

Mr Dennis Jones said he understood that the registrars felt that the centre was not suitable for a register office and that Newark Town Club had been offered as a suitable alternative.