Success for Berkshire Village Halls: Funding Secured for Community Improvements

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We are delighted to announce that three Berkshire village halls have been awarded grants from the Platinum Jubilee Village Halls Fund.

The successful halls are:

Bradfield Village Hall
Midgham Village Hall
Arborfield Village Hall


These grants will be used to make much-needed improvements to the halls, helping to ensure they remain warm, accessible, and well-equipped spaces for their communities.

Kate Meads, Community Buildings Advisor at CCB, said:
“We’re delighted to be supporting Village Hall Charities in enhancing these valuable community assets. Thanks to this funding, the halls will be more comfortable, easier to access, and better suited to the needs of local residents.”

The Platinum Jubilee Village Halls Fund is distributed by DEFRA through ACRE (Action with Communities in Rural England), and aims to support the long-term sustainability of rural community buildings.

Trustee Reactions
The news has been met with enthusiasm and gratitude from the halls’ trustees:

“Woohoo!! We’re over the moon. Thank you SO much for the big part you played in this. We’ll invite you to our Open Day (tentatively early November).” – Eva

“The level of detail in the feedback we received was truly impressive. Your support and expertise are much appreciated.” – Nigel

“A huge thank you for the support, advice, and guidance you provided while we were putting the grant application together. A great example of teamwork—and as we all know, teamwork makes the dream work!” – Jon

“Thank you both for all your help. Looking forward to seeing the work done!” – Paul

CCB looks forward to seeing the transformation of these halls and sharing updates as the improvement works progress.

For more information about the Platinum Jubilee Village Halls Fund click here.

Meet our newest team member!

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David Jennings joined our team at the beginning of the month (July 24) as our new Project Development Officer (taking over from Maria who recently switched roles to Rural Housing Enabler).

David’s work will focus on developing new projects and initiatives that support implementing action plans created through the 21st Century Community Halls programme. Here we ask David to introduce himself and tell us more about his background.

Can you tell us what made you interested in the role of Project Development Officer at CCB?

I admire the purpose of CCB to inspire community action and to deliver projects and services to improve rural health and wellbeing, reduce rural poverty and disadvantage and increase rural digital inclusion and social connectedness. I am already one of the recipients of these as a member of CCB for both Chaddleworth and Great Shefford village halls. As a customer, I have benefited from the 21st Century Community Halls programme so I was excited to be able to use my own professional skills to support and develop the project for CCB.

What are you hoping to achieve in your first six months in the post?
That’s what I’m working out at the moment…only in day three of the role!

What are you most excited about in your new position?
I am passionate about improving quality in local Berkshire communities: to improve our communication, resolve the issues we are facing, increase our collaboration and to get stuff done.

What do you enjoying doing outside of work?
I like to walk the dog, cycle and garden. I have also recently started paragliding again. I am a trustee for four Berkshire charities as their treasurer (Chaddleworth Village Hall, GreatShefford Village Hall, Chaddleworth and Shefford Schools PTFA, The Bakers Trustcovering fuel poverty), I edit the Chaddleworth News parish newsletter and I am the Clerk and Responsible Finance Office for Chaddleworth Parish Council.

If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?
I would like to provoke and reward people’s empathy towards each other and for our ‘pale blue dot’ (Carl Sagan). ‘When we have the wisdom to use mercy and compassion instead of force…we human creatures will finally be on the right path’ (Leslie Thompkins, DC Comics).

21st Century Community Halls Conference

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We are very excited to invite all interested individuals to our Annual General Meeting and 21st Century Community Halls conference. Taking place on Thursday 25th January 2024 at Beech Hill Memorial Hall, RG7 2BE.

Our AGM is a great opportunity to find out a bit more about our charity and our work. It will take place from 9.45 (arrive from 9.30) until 10.15am, there will be then the opportunity to enjoy hot drinks and pastries while having a chat with us and other attendees. If you are short on time, you are welcome to then leave.

However, we would love you to stay and hear more about our 21st Century Community Hall project and take part in our discussions around the rewards and challenges of running a community building followed by a learning session on the technology behind Solar, battery, air & ground source heating, biomass and Infra-red.

Included in the day is a delicious lunch and a free entry raffle with fabulous prizes to be won. We will finish at 3pm.

To book the AGM and/or the Community Halls Conference please click here.

The day will be of particular interest to anyone involved with running a village hall or community building.

The day will include the following:

Refreshments & Networking
Update on 21st Century Community Halls project
Workshop and open discussions that explore challenges and solutions
Lunch
Training that explores and explains Low Carbon technology.
Learning how to calculate both financial and carbon savings by making environmental improvements/changes.
There will also be free raffle tickets and hamper prizes to be won!
As a big thank you to our members, this event is completely FREE. If you’re not already a member of CCB/Community Buildings Advice Service (CBAS) do book to come along and then if you decide to join following the event we will take off the £12.50 paid to attend this event off your membership fee.

Organisations in attendance include; Hallmaster (online booking systems, Norris & Fisher (Halls/Community Buildings insurance), Bridge Interiors (Hall interiors – kitchen specialists), Sound Reduction Systems (acoustics), Gem Energy (Solar/battery/Air source Heat Pumps), ARC Thermal Products (Infra-red systems)