The Story so far - a summary

Watling Gate was the residence of the Newton family; it was built in 1904 at a cost of £2,500.

The family estate originally consisted of 25 acres.  Most of the land was sold for housing in 1920 with only the house and a small plot of land being retained by the family.  The house and land were bequeathed to the newly created Altrincham Borough by Charles Newton in 1937.  His last Will and testament states 

I give to the Urban District Council of Altrincham in the County of Chester (hereinafter called the Council) all of my dwelling house and residence known as Watling Gate, Timperley together with the land forming the site. 

I declare that the Council shall hold the said plots of land hereinbefore given to the Council upon trust for the perpetual use thereof by the public for the purposes of a park or pleasure grounds and for the purpose of exercise and recreation.

I further declare that the Council shall hold the said dwelling house upon trust to use the same or permit the same to be used for any civic purpose such as a branch library and a welfare centre and that part of my house may, if the Council so desires, be used as an official residence for one or more of the Council’s employees and the said dwelling house shall not be sold, let or occupied, by a private individuals or private individuals.”

In 1956 the building was leased to Cheshire County Council as a nursery school and the Borough Librarian occupied the flat until his retirement.  The nursery remained in continual use until the new school, with an integral nursery opening onto Leys Road, was opened.   Since then Watling Gate has remained closed whilst Trafford MBC tried to reconcile the irreconcilable:

• Watling Gate is one of only two listed buildings in Timperley, but it is redundant.  Trafford was unable to find a use for it because it is in the wrong place, is too expensive to maintain and is inherently insecure, attracting vandalism even when occupied.  It was built as a private residence, and, if anything, that is what it should be used for, but Colonel Newton precludes this in his will.

Under any other circumstances, it would have been demolished without a second thought, but it is a Grade II listed building:  Not important enough to attract grants to save it, but too important to destroy.

• If the building belonged to anybody else, the Council would have been able to grant planning permission to have it demolished, but because it owns it, it can’t:
  
  • It needs to set a good example (although that boat has sailed, boys!) to maintain its street cred with all the other listed building owners on the block.
  • It would have to apply to the Secretary of State (Ruth Kelly) for permission, but doesn’t think it will be granted.  It may also be scared of getting a telling off from mother for making a mess.

Eventually, the Council took the easy option and decided to sell the House for a business and, in order to generate maximum revenue, asked bidders to request additional land if they felt that this was required.  The offer which the Council has provisionally accepted is for a yoga and Pilates Centre:  This in spite of the fact that the Developer is now offering more than £150,000 less than originally.  

There are still a few obstacles for the Council to overcome, but, for once, the fact that it owns the land is working in their favour.

The Watling Gate Conservation Society, representing some house owners on Leys Road and surrounding Roads, have objected to the Council’s intention to remove the covenants regarding the use of the premises for business purposes as their properties are similarly affected. However, these covenants are over 100 years old and the Council is hopeful of getting them removed.

To most people living locally, the park, with its green space, is far more important than the building, but it does not have the same statutory protection and so, unless a miracle happens it is likely that the House will stay.