Charity Commission finds that trustees have right to sell thousand-acre estate

The Charity Commission has said that trustees of a one-thousand-acre Cornish estate have demonstrated that it is within their rights to put the estate up for sale, despite residents’ objections.

The Manor of Trevalga, spans 1,199 acres and includes 6 let farms, 17 further houses and cottages and has been owned by the The Gerald Curgenven Will Trust since 1959.

Residents of the Manor of Trevalga – acting under the name ‘Battle for Trevalga’ – argue the decision to sell the estate goes against the intentions of the original aims of The Gerald Curgenven Will Trust.

They claim that Gerald Curgenven, who died in 1959, established the trust in his will with the aim of preserving the Manor of Trevalga for future generations with the profits from rents after maintenance to go to his old school Marlborough College.

The group’s webpage (www.battlefortrevalga.co.uk) notes that it is set to start accepting donations to fund legal costs and raise awareness.

According to a petition set up by the group, trustees argue the Will Trust cannot protect Trevalga under law, and that the trust must end in a few decades. But the group said it has provided “expert legal advice which contradicts both these points however they have refused to consider it”.

On Wednesday (21 September), the Charity Commission, which has been examining the decision-making of the trustees, announced that it has no further regulatory role regarding the decision of the trustees of the Gerald Curgenven Will Trust to sell the estate.

The watchdog said the trustees “demonstrated to the Commission that it is within their powers to sell the Trevalga estate, and that their decision was made independently and in compliance with their legal duties”.

Tracy Howarth, Assistant Director of Casework at the Charity Commission, said: “However, having thoroughly assessed the matter, we have concluded this is not a matter in which the Commission can intervene. In this instance, we are satisfied that the trustees’ decision-making and the process followed have complied with the law and our guidance. It is therefore right that we have concluded our case.”

Responding to the Charity Commission’s decision, the residents’ group said: “We disagree that all questions which hang over the sale and management of the Estate have been answered, and we will continue to campaign to have the sale halted and Gerald Curgenven honoured.”

Adam Carey