Upset as bid to save Knowle Top Chapel, Stannington, as Sheffield community building, is rejected

They raised more than £300,000 in just weeks to try to keep a landmark Sheffield buildling as a community resource.
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But today, campaigners from Stannington are facing the devastating news that the seller has rejected their bid to buy Knowle Top Chapel, the former Methodist Church on Stannington Road.

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End in sight in battle to save Knowle Top Chapel, Stannington, as Sheffield comm...

Stannington campaign group Action for Knowle Top had put together a bid involving community shares, loans and public donations, and had plans in place which would have allowed for the building to be run by local residents in the future.

Knowle Top Chapel. A residents' bid to buy the site and keep it as a community building has been rejected.Knowle Top Chapel. A residents' bid to buy the site and keep it as a community building has been rejected.
Knowle Top Chapel. A residents' bid to buy the site and keep it as a community building has been rejected.
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But their offer for the building has been rejected after another organisation put in a higher bid. It is understood Charity Commission rules insist the building is sold to the highest bidder.

Nicola Parris, joint chairman of Action for Knowle Top, said: “The estate agent has informed us that one bid of ‘unbelievable’ value stood apart from the other half dozen. It is this bid which the vendor has now instructed the agent to pursue.

“Our campaign has been a magnificent example of a community coming together around a worthwhile and valuable project. We are so proud, both of the work our small campaign group achieved and of the community response in raising such a remarkable sum of money. We bid £326,000 for Knowle Top, some 15 per cent over the asking price.

“We were advised, professionally, that this was a strong bid and in other circumstances may well have been successful. This was the highest responsible bid possible, that the community business would have been able to afford without going bust within the first couple of years.”

Knowle Top Chapel. A residents' bid to buy the site and keep it as a community building has been rejected.Knowle Top Chapel. A residents' bid to buy the site and keep it as a community building has been rejected.
Knowle Top Chapel. A residents' bid to buy the site and keep it as a community building has been rejected.
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She added that shareholders and bond-holders had been informed and thanked for their support. Action for Knowle Top intends to hold a shareholder’s meeting in the near future to keep them fully informed, answer questions and take stock of the situation.

Residents who have campaigned for keep the building as a community facility say the chapel has been a striking and much-loved landmark in Stannington since 1879.

Over the years, it has been well used by a range of local groups for concerts, rehearsal space, coffee mornings and local drama groups.