TRUSTEES at the Toothill Community Centre have resigned en masse following a dispute with the group tasked with renovating the centre.

Last week, all members of the trustees and management committee of the community centre handed Swindon Borough Council their resignation.

In 2010, the area was one of 150 across the UK to get a share of £200m from The Big Lottery.

Toothill received £1m and a group known as the Toothill Big Local was tasked with overseeing the distribution of the cash.

TBL launched a consultation last year to find out what residents wanted the money to be spent on and a refurbished community centre came out on top.

But after a number of setbacks, all eight members of the management committee decided enough was enough and walked.

A statement issued by the committee reads: “This decision was not taken lightly but was due to the lack of support from the West Swindon Parish Council and the refusal of TBL to come to the table to bring forward the refurbishment of the centre.

“We have put the centre in order in the face of vile abuse and inaccurate accusations from those who cannot understand the complex governance of the centre.”

Trustees even claimed there was a “hostile” and “illegal” attempt to take over the centre by unnamed individuals.

The statement continues: “We had also been assured verbally on more than one occasion by the parish council that they wished to support us.

“We have worked extremely hard over the last few months to bring the governance and finances of the centre, which had lapsed in previous years to the point where the centre was nearly closed, back into good order.

“We have had assistance and guidance throughout this process from Swindon Borough Council. This support is now no longer available - another casualty of massive cuts to local government.

“It has happened at a time when the need to negotiate a new lease has been highlighted by the Big Lottery if the centre is to receive the funds we had applied for to refurnish the existing building.”

The trustees spoke of “the stress the last six months has placed on our health, relationships and general well-being”.

But Mary Martin, Swindon Borough Council’s cabinet member for communities and place, as well as a member of the West Swindon Parish Council, described the mass resignations as “a little bit surprising”.

She said: “The parish council was very interested in helping with discussions between the lottery team and the centre’s management committee but received a lot of criticism from the trustees.

“The parish council doesn’t have any mandate to get involved because the lease for the community centre is between the borough council and the management committee.

“The parish council is simply not in a position to take any formal steps in resolving the matter.”

She described the committee’s statement as “lacking accuracy”.

Nobody from TBL was available to comment, but the group has previously stressed its aim of “investing in viable and sustainable local projects which the community has identified and supports”.