Boxing charity and church come to blows over sale of derelict Dudley building to developers

Priory Park Boxing Charity said they are not even asking for Christian charity because they have offered hundreds of thousands of pounds to buy the building on Summer Road in Wren's Nest.

Paul Gough, from the charity, said the Diocese of Worcester-owned property, which has been derelict for decades, could be converted into a boxing club to help combat anti-social behaviour and a community hub to help the elderly.

But now Paul fears a new bid by developers could be a knock-out blow for the Wren's Nest estate in Dudley because he claims the building could be demolished and replaced with flats.

The troubled Wren's Nest has been besieged by anti-social behaviour and unemployment and Paul said locals are crying out for a community building.

A spokesman for the Diocese of Worcester jabbed back that “obligations” under the Charities’ Act meant the church had to accept a “considerably higher offer”.

The Diocese said the latest developer bid included “some community use” but would not elaborate when asked what this would be.

Labour councillor Keiran Casey said the church refusing to sell to the boxing charity was a “massive missed opportunity” to do “something positive in the community”.

Paul Gough runs the Priory Park Boxing Gym on Priory Road and supports local schools with boxing programmes to help tackle discipline and behaviour problems.

Not pulling any punches Paul said the diocese appeared to be “putting profit over people” by refusing to work with his charity and selling to developers.

He said: “I just want people to see what the diocese are about because they are not about community, that’s blatantly obvious.

“We’re not even asking for Christian charity because we have offered to buy the building but the church seem to be putting profit over people.

“We want to have it for proper community use because on the estate there is nothing and they are crying out for that building could be used to solve the problem.

“It would be especially good to sort out the anti-social behaviour. The police have a quick response code I am told for the Wren’s Nest now because there has been so much trouble on there.

“I was talking to the local police officer and he said having a boxing club in the building would help the police cause a lot.

“On the estate we know there is a problem with loneliness with the elderly and there are disabled people who want a space to gather. There’s a lot of things the community want which this building could serve.”

Paul said he made offers for the building before the pandemic but was turned down just like he has been again now.

He said: “Initially we were looking at doing a long-term lease on the building like the community centre had been run years ago.

“The diocese told us they would rather sell it, so we said ‘ok, put it on the market’ because obviously you’ve got to put it on the market first before you can look at buying it.

“They put it on the market for offers around £170,000 so I said we couldn’t just magic up £170,000 but if you bear with us a few months we will get the money and we’ll buy it off you and give you the asking price for it. No haggling, just bear with us.”

Paul claimed the Diocese refused his offers and the property was auctioned off for £140,000, although he said that sale fell through because the pandemic.

The diocese would not confirm the price of post-pandemic sale they have now made, but Paul claimed he had heard it was several hundred thousand pounds.

Councillor Casey said opportunities were being missed to work with the community.

He said: “In the end, the diocese have it within their gift to have thought innovatively and worked with a community group to do something with their building.

“We know that they have obligations etc, but if they said right we aren't selling the building on the open market so we have to accept the highest offer, we are going to retain the building, work with a community group and do something in the community, with the intention of potentially letting them purchase this building down the line (which we could have agreed) then they would not have had the same obligations to have met.

“All just seems mad to me and a massive missed opportunity on their part to do something positive in the community.”

A spokesperson from the Diocese of Worcester said: “As a charity, we are required to follow the requirements of the Charities’ Act when selling property.

“The sale of the former mission church was an open process, and anyone was welcome to put in a bid. We met with Councillor Casey and the Boxing Club to discuss a potential bid, and to understand what they were able to offer.

“Whilst doing so, an offer was received that was significantly more than the Boxing Club had indicated they might be able to raise.

“With our obligations under the Charities’ Act, we needed to act in the best interests of the charity and accept this considerably higher offer, particularly as the potential purchaser has expressed a desire for the site to include some community use.

“We are very happy to continue to work with the boxing club to see if one of our other churches might be a suitable venue from which they could operate.”

Over the course of nearly three decades, Mr Gough’s drive has helped establish Priory Park as one of the most successful gyms in the country, winning countless titles but most importantly helping transform hundreds if not thousands of lives.

Earlier this year, Priory Park Community School opened its doors this month in the heart of the Dudley estate. It was the brainchild of Mr Gough and offers an alternative education to children in the borough who require it most, mixing traditional learning with sporting activities and vocational courses.