Cemetery Lodge is back on the market

A building that a parish council controversially decided to sell – and later said had been sold – is back on the market with buyers invited to put their auction bids in within 56 days.

Hadley Cemetery Lodge is for sale by The West Midlands Property Auction, powered by iam-sold Ltd with a starting bid of £240,000 and is being marketed by D B Roberts & Partners, Telford.

Hadley & Leegomery Parish Council had earlier this year announced that the building had been sold and said it would say more when the sale was completed.

A spokesperson for Hadley & Leegomery Parish Council confirmed it’s up for auction but had “no further comment at this time.”

The sale details, available on Rightmove and a range of online sites, say that bidders have 56 days to compete for the property.

The sale of the building in Hadley Park Road had been controversially agreed by the parish council which stated that the building had been neglected over a 20-year period. The sale was judged by the council to provide the “best value to residents.”

Over the last few years, the council has spent six figures in an attempt to get the property up to standard, before putting it on the market.

A spokesperson had said there were many projects in the area that residents wanted investment in.

But the decision to sell caused uproar with a petition launched on the Change.org that was signed by more than 1,100 people.

The building sits at the front of Hadley Cemetery in Telford which the council runs. A chapel in the site could become a new home for the parish council with the clerk organising funerals.

The issue of the sale has been raised at a number of meetings of the parish council, including on July 23, 2024, when the minutes record a series of questions and answers between members of the public and councillors.

The minutes read: “A member of the public noted the sale of the Lodge was discussed in private, can the council confirm any further sale of assets will be discussed in public?”

Council leader, Councillor Eileen Callear (Labour) was recorded as stating that “the council are not intending to sell further assets at this time, however consulting is not always possible.

“Councils make decisions and whenever possible will consult, however councillors are elected to make decisions and that is how all councils work.”

Another member of the public asked why didn’t the council consult on the sale of the Lodge.

Councillor Callear replied that the discussion on the Lodge was connected to an employment issue which is confidential.

“If this matter comes to council again in public session, consultation still may not be possible.”

Story by David Tooley – Local Democracy Reporter

Pic: Telford Live