THE trustees of a former primary school in Rathmell and the diocese of Leeds settled their dispute out of court on Monday, hours before a scheduled High Court hearing (News, 5 April).
It now clears the way for the diocese to approach the Secretary of State for Education for a ruling under the Education Act 1996 for an Educational Endowment Order.
The contested legal ownership of the former school, which had become voluntary-aided in the 1950s, has been conceded by the trustees as not subject to a reverter clause and eligible to be returned to descendants of the original donor.
A key point of the dispute was whether or not the 1841 School Sites Act applied, under which any land grant of up to an acre to trustees for use as a school could immediately revert to the original donor’s descendants should it cease to operate. Matthew Smith KC, acting for the diocese, said that experts who had examined the documentary evidence did not consider the original 1869 scheme, whereby trustees and their supporters say that the school was endowed by a local landowner, Christopher John Geldard — to have made provision for reverter rights, or the Act.
A parliamentary return made in 1906 by the school’s trustees had a dash (—) in the section about whether the 1841 Act applied, and, over the years, no mention of the land’s value or its status as a gift was made.
“This is a positive attestation that there was no separate deed, just a scheme, and so there is no place for reliance on the 1841 Act,” Mr Smith said. “This is the most persuasive evidence, and the trustees’ claim was, at best, an optimistic interpretation of ‘gaps’ rather than based on documentary record.”
A legal declaration on the matter, issued by the Recorder Janet Bignell KC, stated that “a relevant deed under the 1841 Act” was “highly unlikely”. “I am entirely satisfied that the declaration should be made. My own reading of the documents reflects the claimaints’ interpretation. For all others who have sought to assert an interest in the land, matters can move on. The issue of the reverter can be swept away.”
An agreed statement between all parties is expected in due course, and an open meeting will be held in the village of Rathmell this weekend, to explain the situation and consider options for the future. Since the school closed in 2017, the building has been used as a community facility.
A spokesperson for the diocese of Leeds said: “It is now a matter for the Secretary of State for Education as to whether or not to make an order under section 554 of the Education Act 1996. It would be inappropriate for any party to comment any further at this stage.”