Progress
so far ....In the autumn of 2008 the Guildhall had and spent Grants of £2,000 from the Community Council & £3,500 from SABC (total £5,500) to re-build the floor literally from the ground up, the floor is again a suspended floor but now with 4" of insulation and pipe work installed to provide under-floor heating at a later date. During the work the builder & plumber, Clive Tench & Roger Plant, uncovered the mysteries of the corner by the kitchen hatch. We knew it was "sort of" connected with the cellar and was very wet and deep. Uncovering this area it was discovered that two oak joists supporting the end wall were rotten and not really doing their job. A boiler was discovered, we think not used since 1937. Damp was accessing the hall under the floor space from this void and was a main cause of the rot in that area and possibly beyond. The concrete slab against the outside of the back/ east wall was covering this void and was far from safe. In short, this area needed urgent remedial action. We sent a begging letter to SABC and they were kind enough to provide us with £4,500 to carry out the remedial work. Hence the new slab and manhole you may have seen at the back of the Guildhall. When the weather gets better we will open it up again and arrange for those of you that have not seen the Cellars to come and have a look, they have yet to be dated accurately but they are certainly older than 1700. Access is a little tricky, but safe, if I can get down pretty well anyone could. I must mention, and others have made similar observations, the quality of work and skill shown by Clive & his son and Roger the plumber & his son whilst carrying out the work on the floor and boiler void has been very impressive. They have been very generous with their support, commitment and rational reasoned approach to their work. I thank them and hope we can employ them again soon on the next phase of the Guildhall's refurbishment. Following on from the completion of the floor project electricians from RMW have completed a major upgraded our electrical system in the main room up in early January this installation was funded by a grant of £4,000 from the Grassroots Fund We secured a grant from Arts Alive for £5,000 to install Flicks in the Sticks equipment so we shall have a permanent system for showing films. This was installed mid-January by a company from the south of England called Purple Cat and we had our first show on Friday 23rd Jan. The show was MamaMia! and it was enjoyed by an audience in the region of 70 people. Details of future shows can be found on our What’s on page.
The increased usage of the hall meant that the grass car park area soon became very muddy so it was decided to lay stone in the car park and allow the grass to grow through. This project was completed in February 2009 and has proved very successful making an attractive appearance to a hard wearing surface. Over the summer a group raised sufficient money with the intention to improve the condition of the main toilet and making it more accessible for disabled people. Work on this project was completed in October 2009 along with the addition of a stone surface to the car park to prevent it from becoming a quagmire in the winter months and ensure it can take the all year around use it was now getting. By December 2010 the Flicks programme was becoming more popular and a grant became available to upgrade the seating. The first night with the new seats and each one was in use. Since then the Flicks numbers are rarely less than 35.
The hall was still very cold and condensation was running down the walls after each evenings use. Generally it was warmer out side than in. A grant was applied for to tackle three projects at once. Insulate the hall walls and ceiling, re roof the hall and install Photo Voltaic units to generate electricity to sell back to the grid. Fortunately every thing fell in to place and by the autumn of 2011 the Guildhall was very much warmer and the P.V. units where helping to make the hall cost neutral and therefore a sustainable resource for the village. In the Summer of 2012 the Trustees gathered a working Party together and the Main Room was decorated. The Hall has seen many different functions, Flicks, Jubilee, Weddings’ Meetings and of course the Fete, it looks terrific as a venue, evidence of this can be seen in the Photos Section of the Guildhall Website.
Our next Major projects are ; the Kitchen, New Doors & Windows, Toilets & Foyer there is still a lot to be done so help and money are always welcome.
Tim ROBERTS Chairman - Cound Guildhall Trustees
The increased usage of the hall meant that the grass car park area soon became very muddy so it was decided to lay stone in the car park and allow the grass to grow through. This project was completed in February 2009 and has proved very successful making an attractive appearance to a hard wearing surface. Over the summer a group raised sufficient money with the intention to improve the condition of the main toilet and making it more accessible for disabled people. Work on this project was completed in October 2009 along with the addition of a stone surface to the car park to prevent it from becoming a quagmire in the winter months and ensure it can take the all year around use it was now getting. By December 2010 the Flicks programme was becoming more popular and a grant became available to upgrade the seating. The first night with the new seats and each one was in use. Since then the Flicks numbers are rarely less than 35.
The hall was still very cold and condensation was running down the walls after each evenings use. Generally it was warmer out side than in. A grant was applied for to tackle three projects at once. Insulate the hall walls and ceiling, re roof the hall and install Photo Voltaic units to generate electricity to sell back to the grid. Fortunately every thing fell in to place and by the autumn of 2011 the Guildhall was very much warmer and the P.V. units where helping to make the hall cost neutral and therefore a sustainable resource for the village. In the Summer of 2012 the Trustees gathered a working Party together and the Main Room was decorated. The Hall has seen many different functions, Flicks, Jubilee, Weddings’ Meetings and of course the Fete, it looks terrific as a venue, evidence of this can be seen in the Photos Section of the Guildhall Website.
Our next Major projects are ; the Kitchen, New Doors & Windows, Toilets & Foyer there is still a lot to be done so help and money are always welcome.
Tim ROBERTS Chairman - Cound Guildhall Trustees
