CHEDDAR VILLAGE HALL
Trustees Report for AGM, September 27th 2021
Since the last AGM on November 30[th] last year the Hall committee have worked hard to manage bookings and maintenance issues whilst also planning longer term for future improvements. The committee have met on 7 occasions, all on the Zoom platform except for the first “in person” meeting held in the hall on August 16[th] .
As with every organization Covid-19 has dominated the year. Managing bookings has been very challenging and constant attention to the rules laid down in the Government’s roadmap for gradually releasing restrictions has meant frequent revisions of conditions for making bookings and the same has applied to the required hall risk assessment. It has therefore been pleasing to have received a number of grateful comments from user groups reflecting their confidence in the cleaning and sanitizing arrangements which have been in place throughout the pandemic.
As the roadmap progressed through the key dates of March 29[th] , April 10[th] , May 17[th] and June 21[st] (replaced by July 19[th] ) a gradual increase in hall activity took place. Early in the year there were very few events in the hall (but including critical needs such as by the Blood Transfusion Service) and some line dancing groups decided to operate outside in the car park. Later on, although activities gradually returned (especially badminton and low number groups) the need for social distancing and the application of the rule of six had to be observed so, for example, the Country Market could not provide the normal coffee morning catering. In order to allow for cleaning and sanitization between bookings a 30 minute interval was fixed. This helped to support confident use of the hall but of course limited available booking times. All user group leaders had to sign the Covid conditions of hire and to take responsibility for managing numbers, spacing and the activities of attendees. Since July 19[th] there has been a gradual return to a more normal pattern of use and the onset of the autumn period will hopefully see further bookings arising.
The trustees wish to thank the Booking Secretary, Samm Richards, for her considerable efforts in managing the bookings with all the constant protocol revisions. She has worked tirelessly to keep user groups informed throughout whilst also trying hard to offer the hall to prospective (new) users. The decision to abolish the 30 minute interval between bookings made in August will help significantly. Juggling the requests of new users with long-term organisations’ bookings has been handled with immense tact when, in particular, the return of long-term groups has not always been assured.
The accounts, carefully presented by Mark Voice, Treasurer, include reference to a vital grant of £10,000 which was administered by Sedgemoor District Council under the umbrella of Government support due to Covid-19. Obviously this made a significant impact because of the loss of revenue during the several periods of lockdown. The trustees are very grateful to Mark for his work in managing the accounts.
John Morgan has provided a maintenance report but cannot be present at the AGM. He has been a crucial person in proactively managing a whole range of issues as his report reveals and the trustees and all people attending are extremely grateful for all his efforts. In many ways he has effectively been operating as a caretaker with frequent requests for help from a range of directions. He has also managed the sanitizing stations and liaises regularly with the hall cleaner who has increased her frequency of cleaning to every day at the current time – again, because of Covid-19 needs.
A major project within the maintenance work has been the repointing of the west wall which over time has been displaying an increasing number of thermal cracks resulting from incorrect cement based pointing. This has been carefully replaced with a lime-based mix advised by the specialist firm Rose of Jericho (near Dorchester) and approved by the Sedgemoor Conservation Officer. Very valuable local advice was provided by Patrick Emett and the committee were extremely fortunate to enjoy the skilled and tenacious efforts of Darren Pantrey in executing the laborious task over several summer weeks. At the same time the rose window in the wall was reglazed using 20mm structural glass made up by a specialist company from Bristol. The original glass had been affected by thermal movement resulting in cracks. This work was supported by a substantial grant from Sedgemoor District Council, one from Cheddar Parish Council and by 2 from the Somerset Community Council. Without these grants the work would not have been possible.
A very valuable grant was also received towards the installation of a new AV system in the Hall. This will make presentations with illustrations far more effective than previously possible and we are indebted to Mendip Rotary for 50% of the costs. A fixed data projector and a drop down screen at the front of the stage are key components.
It is very likely that the next main maintenance task will be a rewiring of the hall. This will be costly and will involve closure for bookings for the period required. In addition Patrick Westby, (not a committee member but a very much appreciated volunteer) has given valuable advice regarding fire risk assessment and the actions needed to mitigate risks. He has also regularly checked emergency
lighting provision and made helpful suggestions in a number of areas. He has also helped considerably in clearing weeds from the car park perimeter.
The trustees are pleased to report that the legal work required to create an Albemarle lease to the Village Hall CIO is now close to completion after many years of snail-paced progress. This has involved lengthy and complicated procedures but the CIO will thereafter have the responsibility for maintenance and operation according to the 35 year lease. A Schedule of Condition will be necessary to mark and record the condition of the hall, its fabric and structure, at the beginning of this 35 year period. Work carried out by in recent years will be acknowledged and recorded with the Schedule.
All future improvements will depend on local fund-raising and grant support. Local fund-raising has been impossible during the pandemic and grant support is very difficult to obtain in a highly competitive “market”. Meryl Sammut and Heather Scourse have given considerable time and thought to raising grants and were successful in organizing that for the west wall and in obtaining another for future development of the meeting rooms. The latter project will need further grant support before it can happen. The trustees are very grateful to Meryl and Heather. Applications take a long time whilst a refusal from a grant awarding body (and these happen!) probably takes 5 minutes.
Andrew Langford and Elaine Reynolds continue to work on the website development. The Hall now has a Facebook page. They are both keen to ensure that the website is easy to update and as informative and attractive to users as possible. The website’s main current advantage is access to the diary of bookings.
The trustees are also very grateful to Adrian Targett who acts as Secretary. His efficient, accurate and quick recording of minutes is much appreciated.
Whilst some named persons have been included in the above report the trustees continue to be grateful to all the committee members and the many volunteers who help to make the hall a vital local venue for the community. It is very much to be hoped that future months will see a continuing easing of the pandemic. The hall is a valuable and much loved place in Cheddar and the trustees look forward to reporting more activity, improvement and development in the next AGM report.
Rev. Stuart Burns Mrs Dawn Hill
Mr Richard Scourse
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