A private investor has offered to loan the money required to buy College Farm from the Government, if it fails to win cash from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), it was revealed yesterday.

Tenant farmer Chris Ower, said: "We have got the money to buy the farm if need be. A commercial company is willing to loan the Trust the money."

The College Farm Trust is still confident that the HLF will back its plans to rescue the historic farm in Fitzalan Road, Finchley.

However the trust cannot officially apply for a grant until a sale agreement has been reached with the Highways Agency, which owns the land.

Furthermore, the contract offered by the Highways Agency is unacceptable both to the private investor and to the Lottery Fund.

It includes a 'clawback clause' which means that if the trust fails and the land has to be sold on, the agency would receive a hefty slice of the sale price.

A Highways Agency statement said: "The clause is intended to protect the taxpayer. The agency is happy to broker a meeting to assist the HLF's decision."

This week, the chairman of the trust, Bernard Russell, instructed solicitors to inform the agency that they would not accept any contract with a clawback clause.

Mr Ower, said the Charity Commission and the HLF have their own safeguards for protecting the public purse, making the clawback clause unnecessary and restrictive.

"The Heritage Lottery Fund are unable to help unless the College Farm Trust can purchase the freehold without any restrictions. The reason being that since they are funded by the public they also need to protect the money they are giving," he said.

December 5, 2001 18:43

LEIGH COLLINS