A VILLAGE hall's "failing" trustees, including Bromley Council's leader, have been slammed for not "taking their responsibility seriously" - with accounts more than 1,330 days overdue.

The board of trustees at St Mary Cray Village Hall, which includes ward councillors Councillor Peter Fortune and Councillor Roxanna Fawthrop along with council leader Councillor Stephen Carr, stepped in after the previous board disbanded in 2008.

Since their first trustee meeting in December last year, they say they have been making good progress to get its affairs in order.

However, the Charity Commission says the Cray Valley War Memorial Hall charity, which runs the village hall, is not working fast enough and is failing potential donors and beneficiaries.

A commission spokeswoman said: "The commission has recently been in correspondence with the trustees of Cray Valley War Memorial Hall regarding their overdue accounts.

"It is the responsibility of the trustees to ensure the accounts are submitted as required by charity law and it is disappointing that this responsibility has not been taken seriously.

"Cray Valley Memorial Hall is marked with a red border on the Commission’s charity register which indicates the failings of the trustees in this area to potential donors and beneficiaries."

Cllr Fortune said: "The previous trust was so dysfunctional that many members of the community refused to serve on it.

"As a result, the trust suffered from many years of neglect which I am pleased to say that we, the new team - which is made up of only three councillors and six members of the community - have started to reverse."

Cray resident Tina Priestman, 50, of Riverside Close, said: "It should be something that should be taken care of for the good of the people that use Keddle's Gym and the other facilities at the hall.

"They need to be able to use something that is run properly from the bottom all the way through."