SMALLEY LODGE

Grade ll-listed Smalley Lodge, Bell Lane, Smalley, was built in 1860 as a gatehouse to the Shipley Hall estate. But since 1999 the building, which is situated at the entrance to the country park, has remained empty and disused.

Derby County Council, which acquired the park and the gatehouse in the 1970s, said that coal board tenants lived in the three-bedroomed property from 1951 to 1999. But a spokesman said it was now in a poor state of repair and requires complete renovation. The county council says it cannot find any use for the lodge, so it will go under the hammer with a guide price of £125,000. The money will go into the county council's capital programme, which covers projects across departments including education and social services.

A schedule of work for the restoration of the gatehouse will be imposed as a condition of the sale. Smalley Lodge lies in a third of an acre of garden and woodland, which is bisected by a bridleway through to Shipley Park. A county council spokesman said, "The building is in a poor state of repair and surplus to the county council's requirements. In August 2003, we opened a tender process to sell the property. Unfortunately, the successful bidder was unable to complete and it's now being put up for auction."

Graham Mansey, secretary of the Friends of Elvaston action group, claims the demise of Smalley Lodge suggests that the county council has been unable to properly maintain the heritage it owns. Mr Mansey said, "Shipley is the only other large country park in this area. The poor state of the lodge is just one more piece of evidence of the neglect and plunder of the resources belonging to the people by Derbyshire County Council. The county council might like to explain to the taxpayers of Derbyshire just where their money is going, as there are so many areas of neglect across the board."

Smalley Lodge has since been sold by Derbyshire County Council at auction for £150,000. A spokeswoman for Bagshaws Residential Auction Centre, in Corn Market, Derby, said the name of the person who bought Smalley Lodge could not be revealed. Why the secrecy? (Source: Derby Evening Telegraph)