Chairs report

January 31, 2010

A very Happy New Year to you all and a special warm welcome to the new arrivals in the village.

Official Opening

We are delighted to announce that Alan Titchmarsh has agreed to officially open the Village Hall on Saturday March 6 at 12:00 pm. The opening follows what has been a great year in the history of Beech Village Hall.

It was on December 17, just over twelve months ago, that the Management Committee received the official notification from the Big Lottery that our application for funding to enable us to modernise the Village Hall had been successful. Added to our own funds, with grants from Hampshire County Council, East Hants District Council and Beech Parish Council, this meant that we could now go ahead and start work on the project.

Weather

The weather in early 2009 delayed work on the footings, but sterling work by the project team ensured that the timetable did not fall too far behind schedule. With the new main hall extension walls built and the roof on, work could start on the old hall. An opening was created from the old to the new hall and a new entrance to the side of the old hall was formed. Whilst the newly laid concrete floor in the extension was drying out, the original stage and kitchen areas were dug out and floored to create the space for the Lounge and Bar. With new double glazed laminated windows installed, the new toilet facilities and kitchen in place, the new oak entrance porch was erected. Electrical, plumbing, plastering and carpentry work added the almost final touches to the project.

Project Team

Here, I must express my sincere thanks to the Project Team of Phil Ladds, Norman Adams, Vic Richards and the late Mike Smith. Without their unstinting devotion to the task there would not have been a new Beech Village Hall. For those of you who have seen the result of the last twelve months work, I am sure that you will agree that we now have a facility in Beech that is the envy of many of our surrounding villages. The project however is still not finished. Apart from minor work inside the hall, outside lighting has still to be completed, car parking facilities improved, external seating installed and general landscaping. I would like to say now that we can sit back and admire, as well as enjoy, the fruits of our labour, but I am not able to. Why not? Well, because what has been achieved is just the beginning. The modernisation and refurbishment task that has nearly reached completion is just Phase I of our intention of making Beech Village Hall something that we can all feel proud of.

Next Phase

Phase II is the updating of the facilities at the rear of the building incorporating the old toilets and store rooms. The plan is to create a meeting/games room, a refurbished unisex toilet and kitchenette and additional storage space. To achieve this we need to raise the money to do this and so we start all over again!!! No Big Lottery funding this time. A figure of £25,000 is our target and we can only achieve this by the profits from bookings, social events, grants from local councils and, hopefully, the generous nature of Beech residents. Talking of bookings – our bookings team has been inundated with enquiries since the near completion of the hall. Every morning is now booked for most of the year and all evenings apart from Fridays (which we save for ourselves or ad hoc bookings) are taken. These regular bookings include bridge clubs, square and ballroom dancing, keep fit, art and embroidery classes. Remember too that as a Beech resident you will get a generous discount for your own bookings.

Parking

Parking at the hall can get congested at times. Cars parked at the hall should only be those using the facilities. Parking for non-users of the hall should seek permission before doing so. Try and avoid parking on the green unless instructed to do so. Double park if necessary. So the message is – please park wisely!! For those crossing the green whilst dog walking, please use the ‘doggy poo’ bin provided close to the entrance, as most of you do. This is not a council run facility and muggings here empties the bin ! shape – please see article elsewhere in this Newsletter. You can find out all about what is happening in and around Beech and especially at the hall by logging in to www.beechvillage.org.uk. Social Evenings will continue through 2010. These take place on the last Friday of every month and the doors open at 7:30pm. The bar is open and food is available. Volunteers are still needed to help with the food on these evenings so if you can give us a bit of your time please let us know, even if it is only once in the year that would be great.

It’s Your Hall

So finally, here is my usual message with which I start each year. There are over 200 dwellings in Beech with two to three times that number of adults in residence. This equates to a lot of people, with a lot of great ideas, some with time available to help in the successful running of the hall and others who would like to take an active part in the decision making processes that will see a continued future for Beech Village Hall and Recreation Ground for decades to come. It is our Village Hall, not the Trustees, neither solely for those who like to sing, dance and be merry. The Village Hall is Beech, not the pub (we have not got one), not the shop (we have not got one), and not the Community Centre (we do not want one), but it is the Centre of our Community. Let me know, or any other of my fellow Trustees, how you can help us achieve some, or indeed all, of our future goals. Contact us either in person, by letter, telephone, email, carrier pigeon, balloon or semaphore! If you wish to contact us regarding help or ideas please contact me on 563421 or by e-mail. Once again, a very happy New Year to you all and I hope to see you all at some time down at our ‘local’ – the Village Hall.

Peter Cox
Chairman

October 9, 2009

The Annual General Meeting of the Beech Village Hall and Recreation Ground Management Committee was held on Friday 9th October in the Village Hall. The following is an extract of the report presented by Chairman Peter Cox.

I would like thank all the committee members for their hard work over the year together with those outside the committee who have given their time to help run the various events throughout the year and made it another success.

Landmark Event

The last 12 months have been a landmark in the history of the Village Hall.

At the end of last year, our application to the Big Lottery was approved, granting approximately half the funds required for the project. This enabled the groundwork to start in December and has now progressed to the point where the new extension is being used as clearly shown by our holding this AGM in the new hall. 

Project Team

The project team comprises Phil Ladds, Mike Smith, Vic Richards, Norman Adams and, to a lesser extent myself, Peter Cox.

It was with great sadness that in April, we learnt of the sudden death of Mike Smith. Mike paid a pivotal role in getting the whole renewal project off the ground. His technical expertise ensured the planning and design of the new Hall met with all the legal planning and building control requirements and that we made best use of the site. Most importantly, he made sure we made best use of the money we had raised. He is sadly missed.

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce and thank the rest of the team.

Phil Ladds has managed the project and has done a superb job along with all his other interests. Phil has made time to see that, wherever possible, the timetable was adhered to, and whenever problems cropped up, he reviewed, recalculated and resolved them in a most professional manner.

Vic Richards and his son Peter are our lead contractors. They are doing a magnificent job, working all hours necessary, Vic has ensured each phase of the hall’s development has been professionally carried out and has made every effort to meet the deadlines set.

The final member of the team is Norman Adams. Norman is our project coordinator and has worked his socks off on a voluntary basis to see that everything that should be happening, is. His dedication to the task has been unparalleled and the Committee particularly wanted to thank him personally.

Special thanks is also due to Patrick Burridge for his time and effort in ensuring the Village Green and Recreation Ground grass is cut on a regular basis.

Official Opening

The official opening of the Hall will be in the New Year. Already in great demand, the Hall is already booked every night from Monday to Thursday, while from January it is also booked Monday to Wednesday mornings. Friday nights are kept free for ad hoc bookings and our own village events.

Beech residents receive a 25% discount off of the hourly rate (booking forms can be found here).

Social Programme

Our social programme throughout the year has continued to be well attended and included our annual Fete and Hog Roast, quiz nights, comedy evenings, Valentine’s dance, Big Band Picnic, Craft Fair, Bonfire Night, cricket match and Christmas parties. 

The quarterly Wine Society evenings and the monthly Beech Ladies meetings have continued to be a great success.

The Social Evenings on the last Friday in the month have been well attended and with the improvement in the bar and catering facilities it is hoped that the numbers will grow. We do however need volunteers to produce the food for each social evening if we are to carry on catering the event, so please let us know if you are prepared to give it a go.

Volunteers Wanted

The Trustees (the Management Committee) now feel that, to manage the Village Hall complex efficiently, more of their time and efforts will be in the direction of planning and control. It is vital that our social calendar does not suffer and it will become necessary to set up various committees, outside of the management committee, to ensure that the standard of the events does not diminish. A plea here then for residents of Beech who feel that they could contribute some of their time, along with their ideas, to volunteer. Please let the new committee know of anyone willing to help.

All the social events can be found on the Beech village website, in the Diary and elsewhere. Thanks here to Helen Jayalath for her work keeping the website up-to-date and to David Woodroofe for maintaining it.

It would help the organising Committee enormously if we had as many residents’ e-mail addresses as possible so that we could keep the village up-to-date with what is going on. Those of you who have no objection to this please click here to add your address to our list.

Finally, as Chairman, I would like to thank my Committee and many of the residents of Beech for all their help and support during the year.

Peter Cox
Chairman

July 31, 2009

A very special warm welcome to any new arrivals in the village. Please take the opportunity to come along to one of our Social Evenings held on the last Friday of every month at 7:30pm (see Diary or Social page for more details). You will be most welcome.

In my Chairman’s Report this quarter I will in the majority be informing of the progress of the redevelopment of our village hall. You can also see pictures of the progress made by April and August 2009.

Many of you will have seen the changes to the village hall since my last report. Those of you who attend our Social Evenings at the end of each month may well have had a guided tour of the new extension. For those of you who have not seen the progress please feel free to contact me and I will be more than happy to show you around.

So what has happened in the last three months? – well, a great deal.

In the new MAIN HALL –

• the vaulted ceiling has been sound-proofed, plastered and painted
• the laminated double glazed windows have been fitted
• the two side and emergency exit doors have been hung
• the side walls have been plastered (these will be painted by village volunteers in a few weeks)
• plumbing and radiators installed
• electrical work (2nd fix) completed
• audio visual work (1st fix) completed

During mid-July the new main hall will have had the radon screening and insulation to the floor fitted, followed by the floor screed being laid. Skirting and architraves will be fixed and electrical work completed. Final floor covering will not go down until sometime in August.

Elsewhere, in the OLD HALL –

• the stage is out
• the old kitchen is no longer
• the original entrance has gone
• windows are out, bricked-up or re-shaped
• new guttering
• new entrance formed

To come –

• completion of new Main Hall
• new toilets (including disabled toilet)
• new kitchen (with modern equipment and gas-fired boiler)
• new Lounge (where old kitchen and stage were located) incorporating the new bar
• installation of new main entrance porch
• Meeting Room at the back weatherproofed and upgraded
• new toilets and kitchenette installed next to the new Meeting Room
• Store Room weatherproofed

These are just some of the main changes taking place over the next three months. It is hoped that the majority of the work will be completed by mid-September, ready for an Open Evening at the end of that month or early October.

Children in the Bar

Many villagers have asked about the situation regarding to children in the hall when the bar is open. There are strict laws governing alcohol consumption and I thought I would cover this issue where alcohol is being sold in the Village Hall, in the Hall grounds or at the Recreation Ground:-

• Under 16 years old – must be supervised by an adult, but cannot buy or drink alcohol.
• 16 or 17 years old – must be accompanied by an adult and if dining can drink beer, wine or cider (no spirits) if bought by an adult.
• Under 18 years old – it is illegal for anyone to buy alcohol for someone under 18 years old to consume at the Village Hall unless they are over 15 years old and dining.

The Village Hall Committee reserves the right to impose its own rules within these legal requirements.

Back to the subject of Beech Village Hall. I am delighted to say that we are already getting enquiries about bookings in our new Village Hall – word is getting around!! It is likely that Alton Bridge Club is returning to Beech Village Hall as its venue from September on Monday and Tuesday nights. A Bridge training company has booked Wednesday mornings and we have had an enquiry from a ballroom dance training company. Pilates and Body Moves continue their classes in September. Our standard hiring rates can be found on the Beech Village Hall page and we offer Beech residents a substantial discount.

The 2009 AGM will be held in the Main Hall on Friday 9th October at 7:30pm.

Have a great summer break and hope to see you down at our ‘local’ – the Village Hall.

Peter Cox
Chairman

April 30, 2009

A very happy Easter to you all and a special warm welcome to the new arrivals in the village.

Since the last report many of you will have noticed the progress that has been made in the redevelopment of the village hall. With all the ground work now complete and the walls built the roof is now under construction. Please refer to the more detailed coverage of the refurbishment in this issue. We have had the hedges surrounding the green ‘trimmed’ and hope that it is looking a little neater and there is more work to be done up at the Recreation Ground.

Some of you suggested that we made enquiries concerning the possible purchase of the telephone box that is due for removal from Wellhouse Road. This we did. However, we were informed that we were not able to buy the exact box, but we could make enquiries about buying a similar one. As this would defeat the ‘nostalgic’ element of the ‘Wellhouse Box’ we will not be pursuing this idea.

Our social calendar has continued to thrive, although slightly curtailed by the need to restrict some bookings owing to the building work. Do please visit the Diary to see the programme of events in more detail. I would like here to put in a plea for volunteers to take on providing the food at our Social Evenings, held on the last Friday of each month. Costs are covered and it means maybe once a year catering for about 40 people, producing a main meal and dessert. We are currently looking to cover from June onwards through to November. Please let me know if you can help and remember that as from August it is likely that the new kitchen will be installed and cooking can be done on the premises if prefered.

So, the next time that I will be compiling my Chairman’s Report it will be July and by that time there will have been a great deal of change at the village hall. Always feel free to come along and see how things are progressing and any time you want to know more please don’t hesitate to give me a call or email me.

Once again have a great Easter and hope to see you down at our ‘local’ – the Village Hall.

Peter Cox
Chairman