The Charity Commission will not intervene in a controversial plan to sell a charity-owned rural estate in Cornwall to raise funds for an independent school, despite local opposition.
The regulator acknowledged that its decision would be a “further disappointment” for residents, but said it had no role in the potential sale.
The decision clears the way for the Gerald Curgenven Trust to sell the Trevalga Manor Estate, which the charity inherited when Curgenven died in 1959.
The trust raises money for the independent school Marlborough College, which Curgenven attended.
Details published by the estate agent Savills show Trevalga is up for sale for just under £16m.
The row over the future of the hamlet has become known as The Battle for Trevalga in the local press. The estate is home to a manor house, six farms and 17 homes.
Residents have described attempts to sell the estate as “devastating” and said it left them vulnerable to being evicted by any new owner.
The charity’s trustees said selling Trevalga “in its entirety” was the only way to make sure the hamlet was not broken up to cover increasing maintenance costs, and was in line with Curgenven’s wishes.
John Wakeham, one of the charity’s trustees, said in a statement that it was “very distressing to see how our messages have been manipulated and our reputations maligned”.
Wakeham also told tenants: “Please be reassured that the decision to sell the Trevalga Manor estate was not taken without careful consideration by the trustees and, in that decision, the care of the Trevalga community has been borne very much in mind.”
Louise Moelwyn-Hughes, the Master of Marlborough College, said: “The college has already committed to placing the entire proceeds it receives from the sale into a bursary fund for gifted pupils from Cornwall to attend Marlborough College.”
The commission said: “Officials for the regulator met with the trustees of the charity and thoroughly assessed the matter, including the concerns raised by those affected.
“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.
“The commission has therefore determined that it has no further role regarding the sale.”
It added that trustees had “wide discretion” in deciding how to use assets owned by their charities.
Tracy Howarth, assistant director of casework at the Charity Commission, said: “This has been a period of great uncertainty and anxiety for the residents of Trevalga and I know that this outcome will come as a further disappointment for those impacted.
“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.”
The Gerald Curvengen Will Trust holds assets worth £10m and distributes about £100,000 a year to Marlborough College, a private school and charity, according to Charity Commission data.