Angry residents say they had "no idea" a council was planning to sell off a much-loved community centre partly used by a nursery.

Ashford Borough Council (ABC) placed a public notice in KentOnline’s sister title the Kentish Express in November advertising its intention to dispose of Kingsnorth Recreation Centre.

The authority received no objections at the time but neighbours say not enough was done to make them aware of the sale of the building.

The site, which sits in Field View on Park Farm, is now currently under offer with an unknown buyer.

Amanda Adams, whose granddaughter goes to Little Acorns Nursery, which currently rents space in the building, says she only found out about the sale last week after hearing “a throwaway comment” from a friend.

She said: “I'm shocked as I feel this building belongs to this area, how can the council just sell it without public debate?

“I did find the public notice in the end, it was published November 30 in a very small column saying people could write in by December 14, but that was leading up to Christmas so it was unlikely anyone would at that time.

“The privatisation does worry me because we don't know who is going to buy it, what they will use it for and what the conditions are, will we be able to keep the nursery?

"I feel we have no idea what they are going to use it for.”

ABC says a community-use covenant is in place which means the new owner must use the building for community purposes.

But Mrs Adams is one of many who says this does not give her any reassurance.

Susannah De Sanvil, of Bluebell Road, says the sale is "very upsetting" as she missed the 14-day period to write to the council to object.

“As a resident, I have used the centre many times and set up community meetings here and it has been a lovely venue, nice and clean and bright," she said.

“It makes me feel worried because community members may still use it, but at what cost?

“I'm concerned the rent will double or even quadruple.

“To keep it in the council’s ownership would have been preferable or for there to have been some sort of public consultation.”

A Slice of Life gym, which previously rented space in the centre, closed in January last year, leaving the main part of the building empty.

Little Acorn Nursery is currently the only organisation to rent space at the site after the NHS moved a cardiac rehabilitation clinic elsewhere.

While ABC says the sale will not affect the nursery, mother-of-two Lauren Clegg says she is concerned about what the privatisation means for her daughter Eden, two.

“When I first heard, to start with I was confused because it belongs to the community, how can that be sold?” the 35-year-old said.

“It’s a concern of mine because my daughter goes to this nursery and there is a lack of nursery spaces right now.

“I would be concerned if this fell into private hands because you just don’t know what could happen.

“They could decide to close it down in the future if they decide they don't want a nursery here which would be devastating for parents.

“The nursery here is brilliant and really well run so it would be worrying if it were to close.

“People say it has to be used for the community, but who is to say that includes a nursery?

“It shouldn't be a private decision.”

Kingsnorth Recreation Centre was built in 1997 using section 106 contributions from Persimmon Homes.

A trust was set up to run the centre and it entered into a 99-year lease from the borough council, with Kingsnorth Parish Council acting as custodian.

The trust was set up in June 1998, but approximately three years ago, several trustees left.

Some time later the remaining trustees resigned, which resulted in the charitable trust being wound up.

The parish council was left holding the residual value of the 99-year lease but last year decided it was unable to continue.

The borough council says it has been in discussion with Kingsnorth Parish Council for a “considerable period of time” to agree the terms of the surrender and this has only recently been completed.

But Kingsnorth Parish Council says it felt it had little other choice but to hand over the keys.

Cllr James Ransley, chairman of Kingsnorth Parish Council, explained: “As a custodian trustee, we were not legally allowed to be involved in the management of the building.

“We held the lease on the instructions of the charity trustees, who have now fallen away.

“ABC has for a number of years been dangling the idea that this means the parish council therefore has substantial financial liabilities to ABC, forcing us to take legal advice which strongly supported our view.

“We have now surrendered the lease to ABC at no cost to our residents.

“As a parish council, we appreciate the value to residents of the community facility.

“The parish council made an offer to ABC that we would be willing to run the building for the community if it was transferred to us for a token sum and brought into good repair.

“ABC's own survey identified £766,100 of works required in the first five years.

“They were only willing to carry out £278,400 of the works.

“At that point, discussions broke down and we later learnt that, in addition, they would have sought for us to buy the building rather than it being for a token amount.

“The parish council has tried to minimise disruption to residents.

“We expressly highlighted that the NHS operated a cardiac rehab clinic from the building which would need notice to find alternate premises.

“Unfortunately, ABC officers instead changed the locks late on a Friday afternoon and the parish council stepped in to provide an alternative venue for the clinic.

“Given this background we were not keen to continue renting a small office from ABC ourselves and have moved into a temporary office near the pavilion in Church Hill.”

Parish councillor Jim Wedgbury, a Park Farm resident of more than 20 years, says he heard about the sale “at the same time everyone else did”.

“We believe they should have been able to do an asset transfer,” the former ABC member said.

“I have learned a lot about covenants over the past few years, they are never enforced.

“I am very fearful of the future of the centre, once it’s in private hands, anything could happen.

“The centre has always been well loved, over many years there has been great support for it so there is a lot of concern about this.”

ABC says the council stepped in when the trust collapsed and has carried out repairs.

A spokesman added: “All council assets are kept under regular review and once the lease for Kingsnorth Recreation Centre was surrendered it was decided to dispose of the asset.

“This will generate funds that will be reinvested in delivering services to our residents.

“The most pragmatic approach was to offer the building for sale or lease...”

“Following marketing an interested party has been identified.

“The matter is currently in the hands of solicitors and hopefully we will move to completion shortly and the building will continue to service the local community.

“The building has been actively marketed for months on a ‘for sale or to let’ basis, including the publication of a public notice in the Kentish Express, and a potential buyer has been identified.

“The sale has been agreed and further details of the new owner, and the sale price, will be published once we are able to do so.

“The sale will secure the continuing use of the building for community purposes for local residents as well as providing Ashford Borough Council with an important capital injection to provide services for residents in the borough.

“The nursery is not affected by the sale and continues to occupy the centre.

“In addition, the future owner has agreed to the premises continuing to be used for election purposes.”

Council leader Noel Ovenden (Ashford Independent) added: "When Kingsnorth Parish Council decided to hand back the keys, the borough council had to find a solution that would secure the future of this community facility.

"The most pragmatic approach in this difficult financial condition was to offer the building for sale or lease to the open market.

"A restrictive covenant set in stone ensures the intended purpose of the centre is secured in perpetuity."

Find out about planning applications and other public notices in your area by visiting PublicNoticePortal.uk

ABC, which has been run by an Ashford Independent/Green Party coalition since May, knocked down Bockhanger Community Centre in Kennington in April 2019 at a cost of £150,000.

The decision to tear down the building without any plans to replace the facilities drew an angry backlash from people living in the area.

Full plans for the future of the site, which has been grassed over for years now, are yet to come forward.