Hall
Nevendon Community Hall - Church Lane, Nevendon. - John Simpson
One of our aspirations back in 1999, to celebrate the arrival of the new Millennium, was to reach out to the growing community around us, by providing a resource centre. A previous churchwarden, Bob Doe, gave us the idea of replacing our old 1914-1918 Army Officers Mess hut with a purpose built hall, providing all ages with a facility to meet and hold events.
The church community put their hands into their pockets as well as organising fundraising events, and the sum of £10,000 was eventually raised; a small but worthy start to an ambitious idea. In 2005, an application was raised by our Rector for National Lottery funding for the project, this proved to be successful and the building of the hall commenced in May 2005 and was opened in February 2006 by the Bishop of Bradwell and the Chair of the Basildon District Council, Sandra Hillier.
We have now celebrated our first anniversary and the resource has proved to be a success, we now hold regular events in the hall for the community, On Wednesday mornings a toddler's group is held, they are known as "Peter's Poppets", named after our church of St. Peter's which is adjacent to the hall. In the afternoon, a group meets after school to do their homework in quietness, with some assistance being available; they have given themselves the title of "Homework Club". Both groups operate during school terms and are run by volunteers who have C.R.B. clearance. We are always looking for other volunteers as it has been indicated that there is a requirement for extra days to be made available, the community see a need to provide further activities for the young people. The volunteers are actively engaged with a local councillor and local groups to gain a "Green Space", enabling the young to engage in physical activities and to take them of the busy streets.
Other groups use the hall, groups including: Neighbourhood Watch; Bible Study; Community; birthday's; bazaars; fetes, although small, the hall seems to cater for many activities. It has a kitchen with full cooking facilities, supported by a stock of crockery and cutlery for a group of 40 seated. There is a toilet designed to allow wheelchair access and contains baby changing facilities.
The hiring rates are constantly under review, at present they are as follows:
- One off event: £10.00 per hour.
- Regular booking: £6.00 per hour.
[A returnable deposit of £100 is required for all events in case of any damage during events.]
Booking enquiries can be made by calling:
Mrs. Jean Haines (Hall Booking Officer) on Tel: 01268 470679 or
Mr. John Simpson (Community Hall Treasurer) on Tel: 01268 289305.
