A Deptford charity has said criticism of it is “unfair” after land it sold off near a playground could be used for a block of flats.  

Midi Music charity was donated the site of a former pub in McMillan Street in 1990s, which it originally intended to use as its home with a flat above for its youth cultural exchange programme.  

The charity sold the small plot by the Armada Community Project and Charlotte Turner Gardens to Aurora Apartments in 2018, while negotiating that the community use covenant be removed.  

The developer recently applied to build a three-storey block of flats on the now green patch of land. 

But locals say if the plans are approved the community will lose out on green space, while a nursery playground beside the proposed build will be plunged into darkness.  

Some were critical of the charity’s decision to sell it to a developer that would not benefit the community.

But director of the charity, Wozzy Brewster, said because the land was charitable property, Midi Music had a “legal duty to get the best value for it” . 

She said: “In 1999 MMC was offered to tender for its current location in Watsons Street and therefore the charity’s initial plans to build a new home were postponed, having already raised the funds and demolished the old Blushers pub ready for development. 

“Once the decision was made that the charity did not have the capacity to develop two sites, Twinkle Park Trust were given a licence to maintain the Charity’s land until further notice.  

“With funding reductions and austerity in full flow, the charity decided to sell the land and it was initially offered to Twinkle Park Trust, as promised, for first refusal, but they were unable to make an acceptable offer.  

“Because the land was charitable property, this meant that we had a legal duty to get the best value for it, and so MMC proceeded to sell the land with the agreement of the donor.  

“The local community and Twinkle Park Trust, including Armada Court Community Hall, were always aware that if they were unable to purchase the land from us that we would have to sell it.

“We kept our promise to offer the land to Twinkle Park Trust for first refusal but unfortunately they were unable to purchase the land.” 

She said that any criticism of the charity was “unfair”.  

“There was a three-storey building on the land when MMC acquired it, there was intended to be a similar building on the land under MMC’s occupation and there was always going to be a similar building on the land in the hands of any other purchaser in the absence of Twinkle Park Trust buying it,” she said.