For more than a year, residents of the medieval Cornish village of Trevalga have been fighting the sale of their home, however, last week it was announced that it has been sold.
The historic coastal parish of Trevalga in Cornwall is home to just six let farms and 17 other homes, however, when it was announced last year that Trustees engaged Savills to sell for a guide price of £15.75 million, residents were left feeling the future of their homes were uncertain.
As well as fearing for their homes, residents believed that the sale of Trevalga was a breach of the wishes of its former owner Gerald Curgenven, who left it in his will to Marlborough College in 1959 with the instruction to ‘preserve it’ and not break it up.
Now, the “Battle of Trevalga” has come to an end after it was announced that the Manor of Trevalga in North Cornwall had been sold to Castle Lane Securities Ltd, which is part of the William Pears Group, last week.
Campaigners in the village had previously held a number of events, including rallies to protest against the sale.
In October 2022, a spokesperson for the Battle for Trevalga group said they were fighting against “the systematic destruction of local communities caused by second homes and commercial exploitation”.
Battle for Trevalga Campaign co-ordinator Serena Partrick said at the time: “Our fight here in Trevalga is about saving a unique piece of living Cornish history for future generations.
“But there’s a much bigger battle to be fought and it needs to be fought by all people across Cornwall before Cornish identity, community and culture are lost forever.
“It’s already happening. Nurses, teachers, hospitality and care workers can’t afford to buy or rent a home within commuting distance of their workplace. More than 21,000 people are on the housing register in Cornwall while at the same time the county has more than 12,000 second homes and more than 11,000 holiday lets.
“We believe every Cornish individual or family should have a decent first home before anyone else gets the chance to price them out of the market by buying a rarely-used second home.”
The village’s parish was contacted for comment, however did not respond.
Following the news, some took to the ‘Trevalga Support Group’ an online forum which had been used to organise local protests, to give their thoughts. One user said: “Pure greed and betrayal of the original trust by the Charity Commissioners in my opinion!”
With another adding: “There is no-one to be held accountable for this sort of fraud! Councils can get away with murder these days and no consequences for their actions!”
For now residents are left wondering what is next for their home.