Instead it is believed that the secret sum of cash made in the deal by Cheshire County Council will go into the corporate finance budget.

This budget funds the day-to-day services for people throughout the county.

"I have yet to confirm it but the money will probably have gone back into providing services for all the people of Cheshire," said a council spokesman.

"We use the money where it is needed the most."

But this week a former borough mayor demanded to know why county bosses couldn't use the money - rumoured to be around £1 million - to build a new library for the town.

"It would certainly help towards the building of a new library," said Doug Page.

Mr Page, who served on Macclesfield Borough Council for more than 30 years, said he could see no reason why the money wasn't going to be re-invested in Knutsford.

"When Macclesfield sold land to Booths supermarket, the majority of the money was ploughed back into the town," he said.

After that land sale, around £1 million was spent on the Civic Centre in Toft Road as well as on an all-weather pitch at the leisure centre.

Funds were also spent on revamping the old folk's club.

Yesterday (Tuesday) Cheshire officers were unavailable for comment on where money from the sale of the former children's home in Northwich Road was to be spent.

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.