Sunday 10th January 2026
A volunteers endeavours.
My local village hall was built in 1930 in memory of Richard Bentley Smalley whose family was heavily involved in the textile machinery manufacturing industry. It was built by R and T Howarth of Rochdale, the same company who built Christies hospital.
Since we bought our house in 2000 the hall had been used infrequently and was deteriorating year by year, not derelict but looking sad. It is a large building as village halls go and takes a lot of resources to keep it going.
Then thankfully a family saw the potential and along with an other trustee started to make the hall more of a community venue. It has taken 3 years of graft to get to where the hall is today. The changes have been astronomical, the community has really taken the place to it is now the heart and it is now thriving.
A coffee shop has opened everyday except Monday which has become a hub for numerous activities and a place to gather and chat. It is dog friendly and cycle friendly.
Because of the enthusiasm and commitment of numerous people we decided to offer ourselves as volunteers to do jobs which help to improve the hall. Yes, we have been called "community mugs" by some, but to be honest we don't care. We enjoy it and it is worthwhile.
Hopefully from what you see below will help you understand why we do what we do.
First the grounds of the hall were very overgrown with Brambles, weeds and Himalayan balsam. What used to be a car park was an 8ft high jungle, this was one of our jobs to clear. We spent weeks and weeks cutting, strimming, clearing, filling waste bin after waste bin until we found the boundary line. Once the area was dug out of the bramble roots good soil was added and the planting started.
Above photographs of where the car park used to be The building at the back is an
electric transformer and the hall boundary.
After many weeks of sore hands, bad backs, insect bites,
bramble rash we made progress and today it looks like the photographs below. There was also a small garden at the front of the hall which we did as well.
The refurbished car park and the boundary cleared.
Looking better. (The broken flags have been replaced)
The sheep in the adjacent field are very inquisitive.
Starting work on the front garden
Finished.
While the gardening was being done others were painting the exterior which had not been done for a very long time. Part of the hall at the rear was quite high and a local firm kindly lent us a
cherry picker.
Inside the hall, the coffee cupboard was doing well and thriving. Locals had put together a drama group, a knitting circle, table tennis as well as children uniform groups.
The next really big job was the stage or I should say under the stage. This area was jam packed with donkeys years of junk which was damp and mouldy and needed to be removed. This was completed which numerous large skip loads of waste. I should have taken photographs of before and after but I didn't.
Due to the "Cellar" as we call it, the draught was quite noticeable and so we insulated the walls and ceiling and then plaster boarded the room. Lighting was installed and power sockets added. Today it is heated storage space and a small workshop area.
During under stage "The Cellar", renovation.
Under the stage as it used to look, a cold, dark, damp waste of space.
Installing the insulation.
Installing the plasterboard.
Fitting the new storage shelving.
Most important part of the job. We rehearsed this numerous times.
The next big job was the floors which hadn't been touched since the 2nd world war when the hall was a war kitchen. Some damage must have occurred during this time because a section of the main hall floor was replaced. Originally the floor was Maple but the repair was done in Oak.
Before we set about doing the main hall which measures 178 square metres it was decided that it would be a good idea to "learn" on a smaller area. So a small side room was done first. This was a success and next we emptied the coffee shop and did the floor in there. Then the main hall was sanded, edge painted, repaired in places and then five coats of finish was applied.
Having sanded and cleaned the floor its time to apply the finish.
With what we learned from doing the small room we then started on the Coffee Shop. The floor was heavily marked and took a lot of sanding.
Post sanding the floor was washed with white spirit and then four coats of finish was applied.
The Coffee Cupboard re-installed.
After a few days break the big job, the main hall, had to be done while the hall was closed over Christmas.
Sanding completed. Then it was a matter of repairing damaged parts. You can see on the above photo (where the lads are) the slightly different colour of the oak wood against the maple.
We spent a day cleaning the floor and then as much of the hall as we could. The edges of the floor was stained inn ebony colour prior to the finish.
After five coats of lacquer the job was completed.
That's where we are today. Obviously lots of other jobs/tasks have been done including the installation of solar panels on the hall roof, scenery for the plays, sound system improvements, many which I haven't gone into in this blog post. People have given up hours and hours to get to this point. It has been challenging and just like your home it never ends.
The enthusiasm has been amazing and everyone deserves a pat on the back. What a great community.
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