Tenby town councillors have finally given the go-ahead to provide further grant funding to the Trust that runs the town's De Valence Pavilion venue.

Councillors finalised the decision at their meeting on Tuesday evening, having decided on a number of conditions to put on the agreement to provide the Trust with further grant aid.

They went on to agree that the level of grant aid to be given to the De Valence Trust for 2010/11 should remain at £35,000, subject to a satisfactory performance review being undertaken annually.

Certain conditions put on the agreement stated that the council's own De Valence sub-committee meet with the Trust to review the lease agreements to identify and rectify any errors and anomalies, and that the council meets with the Trust to review office arrangements.

A further condition stated that in the event of the Trust going into administration, any unpaid grant would be retained by the town council and not be regarded as an asset at the Trust by their administrators.

"The setting of these conditions will be beneficial to us the town council and also the De Valence Trust, so we both know where we stand," said Deputy Mayor, Clr. Mrs. Julie Evans.

Clr. Mrs. Caroline Thomas congratulated the sub-committee for coming up with one of the conditions that states that the council would not provide further grant aid to the De Valence Youth Theatre, but instead set aside this sum to provide subsidies to local schools and charitable organisations seeking to hire the venue for events.

"What a wonderful suggestion to increase the use of the facility in the community, which is what everyone wants," she commented.

"We hope that subject to these conditions, this will be the beginning of a long and lasting relationship between both parties," added Clr. Mike Evans.

However, talks on the issue did not pass without a hint of controversy, as following weeks of discussions on the matter and some councillors' concerns as to whether Clr. Mike Thorne should declare an interest and not participate in the De Valence debate due to his previous involvement as a Trust member, Clr. Thorne left the chamber before a decision on the matter was made, revealing that a 'code of conduct' complaint had been made to the Ombudsman against him regarding the issue of non-declaration of a perceived interest.

"As a complaint has been made to the Ombudsman, I wouldn't want to see any involvement on my part in any decision jeopardising the outcome, so congratulations to those who have succeeded in removing me from the debate," said Clr. Thorne, before leaving while discussions took place.

Following the meeting, the town clerk, Mr. Andrew Davies, confirmed that he had received notification from the Ombudsman that 'code of conduct' complaints against Clr. Thorne had been made.

"The Ombudsman will now decide whether the complaints warrant investigation," explained Mr. Davies.

"Advice from the monitoring officer is that 'When a complaint has been submitted to the Ombudsman, and even when a decision to investigate is pending, it might be prudent for all parties to consider whether an observer, aware of all the relevant facts, would reasonably perceive that there is an interest which should be declared where the business, the subject of the complaint, arises at a meeting'.

"This means that, should the complaint be investigated, and upheld, any council decision on the issues that are the subject of the complaint made during the investigation could be challenged if the councillor concerned continued to participate and vote," continued Mr. Davies.

Clr. Thorne has since stated that he will be "vigorously contesting the allegations" made against him relating to his participation in debates on the De Valence and planning issues.

The director of the De Valence Pavilion, Victoria Smathers, said that it was fantastic news that the Town Council had finally agreed to continue to fund the Trust.

"It's such a relief, as we've been in limbo for so long, but the support from the general public has been amazing and I'm extremely grateful for all the letters.

"The De Valence Pavilion isn't just a building, it is now a thriving community arts venue and this support from the town council is a step in the right direction to making the venue ever more successful for Tenby," added Mrs. Smathers.