Here at CCB we were thrilled to hear from Chair of Cookham Dean Village Hall, Finbar Murphy, who wanted to share with us his good news story regarding how the trustees had worked with community initiatives to ensure that the village hall remained a community hub even managing to adhere to Covid 19 regulations. We know how important community buildings and village halls are to their local community often providing the space to run events and community gatherings that help combat loneliness and isolation. Please read on to read this good new story.

In October 2019 the lead tenant at Cookham Dean Village Hall (Noah’s Ark Nursery) was obliged to close down.  It was a sad ending particularly as it had been a central part of village life for nearly forty years.  It also had a significant impact on the financial viability of the hall, which is funded entirely by community donations and hall rental fees.

On the upside it meant that a significant portion of the hall schedule was now open, and the hall committee were free to look at new uses for our treasured community resource

One of these ideas was a local producers market, providing a platform for local producers to sell direct to locals.  A metre market – “fresh produce metres from your door”

We were in the planning stages when the Covid-19 situation refocussed everyone’s attention.  We initially shelved the idea, but then found it was something that we could do to help several local produce suppliers who had lost their traditional customer base of restaurants and public houses. 

Like all good community initiatives we started with one stall selling locally baked sour dough loaves, and with some great support from our community have grown that in eight weeks to over twelve producers offering Bread, Vegetables, Cheese, Sweet and Savoury Baked Goods Beer, Coffee, Beer, Flowers, Jams, Honey, Granola and even Dog Biscuits!, all sourced locally in and around our village.  We have now added a small coffee garden thanks to the generous support of the local Woman’s Institute, so we can enjoy a socially distanced coffee and chat.

We made some investment in infrastructure and technology so we could provide internet ordering, with pickup and delivery services.  We have also learnt a lot about running and managing a market environment in a safe and engaging way.

From a financial perspective we have been able to secure 50% of our lost revenue from a single morning usage, providing us with the luxury of exploring what other uses our hall can be put to.

We are blessed with a strong local community but a few really exciting side effects that we have seen already. 

1. The market has been the springboard for 3 local people to start their own businesses, and we have two more in the wings.
2. With the majority of local community services/activities constrained the market operation is fulfilling a strong social contact role, who would have thought that people like to shop and chat !

Under normal circumstances the hall would be used by a variety of charitable groups to host fund raising events, which they can no longer do.  With the support of our stall holders we are operating a weekly hamper raffle.  This will allow us to raise in excess of £10,000 for local charities as a consequence of running the market.  As one of our stallholders put it “a great way of supporting the community that supports us “

The whole experience has been transformational and it is really pleasing to see the diverse range

of customers, who return each week  and to have our village hall back as a focus point for village life at such a difficult time. 

We ran our first customer survey last week and this is some of some of the feedback

“Local produce, fab quality and welcoming atmosphere”

“Seeing friends; getting treats for weekend ­lunches from local sellers”

“Great local produce, good prices”

“Where it is, the choice of stalls, the organiza­tion”

 “Well organised and marked out”

This project has helped us secure the financial viability of our hall and allowed us to support our community in more ways than we could have imagined.”
“Love the unique village feel of our very own market.”

We have confirmed that there is a very strong appetite for supporting local producers, based on reducing food miles, a general swing towards local/micro retailing and a direct consequence of the social distancing / self-isolation/ working from home situation, so the meter-market is the right idea at the right time

We believe that the model we have developed can be replicated in villages across the county and we would welcome enquiries from interested community organisations.

In the meantime I would encourage you to look at our online system www.metre-market.com and to visit us any Friday morning between 8:30 – 1:00.

Finbar is keen to see if this might be replicated in other Berkshire communities so if you would like to get in contact with him for more details please contact Kate.Meads@ccberks.org.uk so she can pass on his details.

by Phillip Vincent, ACRE

National charity, Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE) has published updated information to help village halls reopen in light of new government guidance.

Since 4 July, England’s 10,000+ village halls have been allowed to reopen. But government rules on social distancing, as well as the activities that are permitted to take place in these community buildings are complicated and frequently changing.

Many village halls are run by local volunteers, most of whom are not familiar with interpreting complex legal guidance. Thankfully, help has been on hand from a network of county-based village halls advisers who have been able to explain the new rules using information sheets prepared by ACRE – CCB is the Berkshire representative.

The charity first published information to help village halls reopen in June and was met with an overwhelmingly appreciative response.

ACRE is continually reviewing the Information Sheet to make sure it is compliant with changing government rules on social distancing.

UPDATE – On 18.09.20 ACRE’s Information Sheet was updated once again to reflect the most recent government rules on social distancing. It confirmed that groups of more than 6 people can meet in village halls provided appropriate social distancing measures are taken. It also provided advice on keeping temporary records of attendees to assist with NHS Track and Trace. Amendments were also made to the appendices, particularly Appendix D.

Download the guidance

The following information can be freely used by village halls committees.

Information Sheet – Re-opening Village and Community Halls post COVID-19 closure Updated 18.09.20

Sample COVID-19 Risk Assessment for re-opening Village and Community Halls Updated 18.09.20

Sample Risk Assessment for Hirers Updated 18.09.20

For advice and support, as well as Word versions of these resources, please contact Kate.Meads@ccberks.org.uk if you are a mamber of Community Building Advice Service. For further information on membership please click here.

Connecting Communities in Berkshire are running this webinar for Trustees/Volunteers that run Community Buildings/Village Halls in West Berkshire.

This training will cover:

• Management Committee concerns about the safety of activities that regular hirers want to start providing

• Hygiene requirements

• Shared responsibly & working with Hirers

• Flexibility through the expected ‘phases’ and ‘changes’ during the Pandemic

• Latest government updates regarding hirers and what is/isn’t allowed in community buildings

• Facilitate Frequently Asked Questions session and a chance for volunteers/trustees to share knowledge and experiences
Free to CBAS members, £15 to CCB members and £25 to non members.

From 14 September, whether indoors or outdoors people from different households must not meet in groups of more than 6. This limit does not apply to meetings of a single household group or support bubble which is more than 6 people. Community facilities following COVID-19 secure guidelines can host more than 6 people in total, but no one should visit or socialise in a group of greater than 6. Further information on social contact rules, social distancing and the exemptions that exist can be found on the guidance on meeting with others safely. These rules will not apply to workplaces or education settings, alongside other exemptions.

Rules in other venues and activities
Venues following COVID-19 secure guidelines will be able to continue to host more people in total – such as religious services in places of worship – but no one should visit in a group of greater than 6. When you visit one of these places, such as a pub, shop, leisure venue, restaurant or place of worship you should:

• follow the limits on the number of other people you should meet with as a group – no more than six people unless you all live together (or are in the same support bubble)
• avoid social interaction with anyone outside the group you are with, even if you see other people you kn
• provide your contact details to the organiser so that you can be contacted if needed by the NHS Test and Trace programme

Our Community Buidings Advisor, Kate Meads, explains: “My understanding is that you can carry on as described above, but it seems sensible to reiterate to your hirers the need for social distancing and, more importantly, that they ensure that their attendee are in groups of less than 6 if it is necessary to be in groups at all. Hirers also need to understand that they must take names and telephone numbers of attendees for Track & Trace purposes and be able to notify the hirer if there are any positive Covid cases among their clients.”

Some useful guidance:

Safe use of multi-purpose community facilities

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-the-safe-use-of-multi-purpose-community-facilities/covid-19-guidance-for-the-safe-use-of-multi-purpose-community-facilitie

If you are involved with running a Community Building and would like to receive regular updates and support from Kate please contact Kate.Meads@ccberks.org.uk to learn more about our CBAS membership service.