Are Age Uk going to change their minds about selling Woodcot?

Hello Woodcot Supporters.

It’s been a while since the last update meanwhile…..hope you're all enjoying this SCORCHIO sunshine…..? 

Salcombe is full to bursting with happy holiday-makers and many people are asking …What is happening with the Woodcot campaign? 

Fear not. It may have gone quiet -  a bit like  Paul Farmer the CEO of Age Uk - but it isn't dead.  

However  an update is overdue -  so here  it is… 

In a nutshell; everyone is waiting to see what Age Uk do next.  The ball is very much in their court. 

A much anticipated meeting between Age Uk and the six remaining residents was planned for end of May 2026; it was postponed. By Age Uk. 

The residents were visited this summer by Age Uk execs and the charity’s  surveyors. (The campaign is not privvy to that information)  but the word on Fore Street is that Age Uk are appraising the viability  of re-letting the flats. Hmmmmmmmmm -  

Another meeting is scheduled for September 2026. …. 

Remember. Age Uk said that they would announce their decision by 2026? Clearly they are playing for time - meanwhile Salcombe waits  - as do the six remaining residents some of whom are now quite unwell and all of whom are still none the wiser about their future. 

It is partly for this reason that the campaign has shifted its focus away from publicity - to give the residents some peace. 

However this campaign,  whilst sympathetic to their case, is not  just about the residents - it’s about the community of Salcombe and Miss Jenning’s legacy; at the end of the day  this is  about the morality and legality of using charitable funds -  to overturn a  covenant -   which  only exists to protect their own beneficiaries. Just think about that for a moment. 

The campaign is still quietly ticking away in the background following the  success of  summer 2025, when the campaign started and the story broke in the Sunday Telegraph. Since then, not a week  has gone by when someone hasn't signed the petition; even through the long, dark, damp days of this last  Devon winter, the names  kept on coming.  

And incredibly- despite the lack of publicity this year  -  the signatures  still come thick and fast…. Which just goes to show the strength of feeling about what Age Uk are doing. We are well on our way to 5000 signatories. Thank you to everyone of you who has signed shared and  an especially  big thanks to those who have donated.

At this point it would be nice to say that the campaign has done enough to persuade Age Uk to reconsider their actions and re-let the  ten empty flats as Miss Jennings intended; but sadly life is  rarely that simple -  especially when there are millions of pounds at stake…..

The truth is that a campaign needs money to keep it going and although everyone has been supportive and generous - the simple truth is that  the campaign hasn’t raised as much money as was hoped. The money that has been raised is  sitting safely  in the dedicated Woodcot Barclays bank account; it was raised for campaign costs and  to date less than a hundred pounds ( mainly for  2025 printing costs) has been spent so far.….the campaign has also been able to access professional advice  for free, that would otherwise  have cost thousands of pounds. 

As an aside… One of the strange aspects of life in Salcombe ( and its surrounds ) is that it counts amongst its resident population some seriously big players, including big players in the world of charity law and global banking. A quick look at some of the names on the register of electors should have  AGE UK CEO Paul Farmer lying awake at night…… Fortunately the campaign has been to be able to call on  some of them for advice and contacts. 

So forgive us if at  this stage we will not be publicly declaring how much the campaign has raised for obvious reasons. Age Uk are watching. 

Has the campaign raised enough to win a legal challenge against a giant corporation like Age Uk in the courts? No. Has it raised enough money to take the next step and fight on - most definitely yes.

The fundraising platform Go Fund Me has only achieved 78% of its modest goal of £2000. £1,565 in total. This is disappointing.

No doubt there are several reasons for this - the main one is that the campaign was monetised too late. Initially, it was just a campaign to raise awareness. Then, several months in, the decision was taken -  belatedly -  to monetise the campaign - with  hindsight that was a mistake. 

Another apparent disincentive is that the Go Fund Me platform itself is deemed to be untrustworthy…. Who knew? 

There are apparently other reasons behind the lack of donations.  Some people were critical of the decision to go against a charity like Age Uk;  others were unsympathetic towards a cause which many see as  a “high class” problem - many cared, but not enough to put their hand in their pockets. A faint-hearted few just don’t  believe its possible to take on  a giant like Age Uk….. 

Thankfully  there are many who have been very supportive and donated both online and via  the dedicated Woodcot bank account. It has also helped enormously that several local charities have thrown their support behind the campaign and many donations have come via that route. The campaign is deeply grateful to all donors for their generosity. 

So what next? Now  that the campaign has  got  the attention of the people that matter: the public, the national  media,  the local politicians, the future beneficiaries, and perhaps most importantly of all - the attention of Age UK. It makes it much harder for Age UK to quietly dispose of Woodcot. 

The campaign is keeping its tinder dry for the time being…. The film made  in November has yet to really be fully utilized on social media - in truth because the campaign doesn’t want to publicly slag off a charity- but it will if necessary. Nothing is off the table….

One particular low point for the campaign came at the end of last year. It was a crushing blow that South Hams District Council  (SHDC) couldn’t find a way to support listing Woodcot as an Asset of Community Value ( ACV)   just before the council was disbanded - despite weeks of work, lobbying the local district councillors and decision makers  - for some reason they reneged on their promise to support the ACV application.

So please  do remember that at the ballot box come the next round of local elections. 

A small consolation is that Salcombe Town Council have listed a Community Access Plan for Woodcot. Another is that SHDC is no more. 

Thanks to the recent Local Government Reogansiation, more power will be diverted to town and parish councils so please do  link your Facebook accounts to Salcombe Town Councils Facebook page an d do attend  Salcombe Town Council meetings and make sure your voices are heard. Salcombe is under increasing threat especially with the relaxation of the planning laws. 

The loss of Woodcot will make Salcombe waterfront vulnerable to developers. It is unthinkable that there may  be no more Open Gardens for people to enjoy, no more fundraisers for local charities and no more homes for elderly people. 

Miss Jennings paid good money to lawyers to  ensure that Woodcot was protected - it is doubtful that she would ever in a million years  have perceived that the threat to Woodcot would  come from the very people that she had entrusted to look after it. This is how far our charitable institutions have sunk. It is shameful. 

The Age Uk trustees must come in for some scrutiny for their part  in this debacle and it may be that this is where the campaign focuses its attention in the future. 

True to their word, Age Uk surveyors have been down ( at what cost?), assessing Woodcot’s viability as a going concern.  

Frankly  it beggars belief that Age Uk can’t make a go of Woodcot which comprise many  acres of the most valuable  real estate in the country; but let’s not kid ourselves - Age Uk want the easy money that comes from selling - so  it remains to be seen whether  Age Uk aren’t just surveying Woodcot under the  cruel pretense of re- letting  the flats when in reality they are just building their case to justify overturning the covenant. 

You may remember from previous updates that Age Uk had repeatedly been asked by  assorted interested parties for evidence to support their reason for selling Woodcot: the campaigners,  the residents, other local charities and  Salcombe Town Council, all repeatedly asked to see the accounts or any evidence to support their claim that running Woodcot was unviable. 

Nothing came but denials and evasion. Age Uk  and its trustees kept schtum. 

Perhaps now, this is the reason behind the latest survey? 

The truth is  that Age Uk  have been running Woodcot at a loss for years. Leaving flats empty which could easily and quickly  be let out - after all there are still six residents living  there -  so it must, by law, already be health and safety compliant…the building is secure, safe, sound and very comfortable. 

Many people, including potential future beneficiaries,  have contacted the campaign and told us that they would love to move to Woodcot. Given the fact that Salcombe  has an acute shortage of housing suitable for elderly people it is nothing short of  scandalous  that there are  still ten flats sitting empty at Woodcot. 

Of course Age Uk were hoping that they could quietly sell off Woodcot without anyone noticing. Not so! Salcombe is a small town… everyone knows and loves Woodcot. 

Thanks to all of you:- the people of Salcombe, the residents of Woodcot, the Jennings  family, the Town Council, Caroline Voaden MP,  the local charities and of course not forgetting the excellent work of the Sunday Telegraph newspaper investigative journalism team  who ran with the story  in the first place -- all  have sent Age Uk a powerful message. Its over to them now….in the meantime please keep signing, keep sharing and keep donating:

Sign: https://c.org/jx9msxhfB6

Share: Facebook: Save Woodcot in Salcombe 

Donate: Woodcot. Barclays Bank Account: Sort Code: 20-68-15 

Account Number: 13300536

Go Fund Me: https://gofund.me/5a340202d