Halls the 'hub of the community'

Village Hall Safeguarding Week takes place from November 16 to 22, and a report from Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE) has revealed that village halls make a significant contribution to the economy

Just before lockdown, more than 2,100 halls took part in the National Village Halls Survey 2020, which found that at least 10,000 people earn a living via these community buildings, with a further 4,500 people employed as cleaners, caretakers and managers.

Nearly half of all halls serve as a venue for private parties, and a quarter host weddings, with one in ten also home to community businesses such as shops, cafes, and post offices.

Additionally, 70 percent of respondents had undertaken improvement work, extensions, or erected new halls in the last five years.

This includes Heckington village hall, which has recently had a new roof and kitchen area, as well as extensive decorating and refurbishments to the toilets.

Jan Palmer, chairman of the parish council and spokesman for the village hall committee, said that the hall is a valuable community asset:

‘We had a pop-up food bank there during lockdown and it did a great job helping those who needed it,” she said

“The volunteers are crucial, and it’s all part of being in the community and keeping the building going, it’s a vital thing.”

The village hall hosts many local groups, including amateur dramatics group Heckington Players, a bowls club, cinema and luncheon club, many of which have been unable to return for the time being.

Jan said: ‘The art group are still able to come in as they’ve got a huge table they can sit around socially distanced, the Vitality exercise group do exercise on chairs and they’ve been able to do that safely as well, as well as the Slimming World group.

“The Heckington Players haven’t been able to come back though as they can’t safely host any performances, and neither has the junior group.

‘We hosted a big monthly cooked breakfast and would normally hold lots of fundraising events, but they’ve all had to be cancelled.

“It’s difficult for everyone.”

Over near Louth, sadly none of the groups which use Legbourne and Little Cawthorpe Community Centre's hall have been able to return.

Legbow Archery Club has been making use of the playing field however, and have been holding informal practices on Sunday mornings.

John Marvin, treasurer of the club and committee member of the centre, said:

“We’re not quite back to normal, we were meeting on a Wednesday evening indoors in the winter and outdoors in the summer.

"We can't use the hall to practice inside because of distancing, so we’re having to meet on a Sunday morning instead of an evening because the light is too bad.

“At the moment we have maybe a dozen coming, a lot of people are staying away due to distancing."

The hall’s committee was awarded a government grant five months ago to keep it up and running and pay expenses and bills, but the lack of revenue will soon become a struggle.

ACRE’s research found that those living in rural areas are at heightened risk of social isolation, with 60 percent of respondents stating that their halls are the only meeting place for their community.

Activities such as coffee mornings and luncheon clubs are helping to address loneliness among vulnerable groups, and St Peter’s Hall in Woodhall Spa is one such valuable asset which hosts many community groups.

Chairman of the committee, Stella Arden said: “We reopened on October 1 and it’s good that we’ve been able to accommodate people in the community who wouldn’t have the opportunity to get out much, as Woodhall Spa has a large elderly population.

“Normally we have a Move It or Lose It class, Tae kwon do, three WIs, table tennis groups and dance groups but they haven’t been able to come back yet.

“The Organ Society also holds their meetings here and normally attracts international guests but we just haven’t been able to do it as hardly anyone can come from overseas and we can’t justify opening the hall for so few people.”

“It’s also sad that the parent and toddler group hasn’t been able to return,” Stella added, “These are families who are more likely to need social interaction as it’s lonely when you’re trapped in the house with young children and spent most of the year in lockdown, either trying to home educate and work. Children do suffer from the lack of social interaction.”

Volunteers also play an important function in maintaining the buildings, carrying out small repairs, maintenance and checks within 94 percent of respondent halls.

Spilsby’s village hall, the Franklin Hall, is a registered charity run by a team of volunteer trustees.

The hall not only offers fitness classes for all age groups, but also hosts Spilsby WI, lunch club, Tai Chi classes and is a venue for wedding receptions and parties.

Hall manager Sue Oliver said: “We reopened on September 1 as we wanted to reopen as soon as we were able to, it’s our duty to open the best we can.

“As darker nights are drawing in it’s important that we can offer somewhere for people to go and socialise, there will be a huge mental health problem with people having to isolate and this way, we can help.”

“We’ve had people who’ve said that this is so valuable to them, as the days get shorter they’ve said it's so nice to come out and see somebody, we’ve had some nice feedback.

“All we can do is work together in these troubling times.”

Sam Sorrell is one user of the Franklin Hall and has hosted twice-weekly Zumba classes there for the past nine years, as well as the Tower Gardens Pavilion in Skegness.

She said that the committee have been very keen to welcome the regular users of the hall back and have been very supportive.

“The committee has been great, they completed a RISK assessment and shared it with me, I then completed a RISK assessment and my Covid measures and started back in September.”

ACRE chairman, David Emerson CBE said:“It is only through the commitment and generosity of tens of thousands of volunteers who help run halls and the activities within them that we create the multiple social and economic benefits which these halls deliver for their communities.

“Community activities build strong communities and create better mental and physical health, not just for vulnerable individuals but for everyone.

"Eighty percent of respondents knew someone whose lives have changed for the better as a result of joining activities at their local hall. The service provided by these unique spaces is needed more than ever.”