£22,000 revamp for oldest building

A MAJOR £22,000 revamp for a church hall that is the oldest community building at Culcheth, near Warrington, is being announced today.
The announcement of the scheme at Newchurch Parish Hall, in Common Lane, is being made by Newchurch Parish Church, at the annual Culcheth Victorian Day.
Built in 1821, as a village school, parts of the building are now in a poor state of repair, including crumbling brickwork, damaged bargeboards and soffits, a failing flat roof and obsolete lighting.
The Rector, the Rev Dr Chris Stafford and members of the management committee have obtained a grant of £22,565 from the Veolia Environmental Trust through the Landfill Communities Fund to help finance the essential repairs.
It will help pay for the replacement of lighting in the main hall with a more suitable and environmentally friendly system, and for repairs to the exterior.
The Rector said: “Newchurch Parish Hall plays an important part in the life of our local community. Around 30 groups meet here on a regular basis, including an OFSTED registered pre-school, karate, dancing, Guiding, dog training, film club and an annual pantomime, and we estimate that around 36,000 visits are paid to the building each year.
“This work will ensure that we can bring the building up to a good level of repair. We are very grateful for the assistance that has been provided by The Veolia Environmental Trust which means that we will continue to be able to make the Hall available to the community at a reasonable cost.”
Trust executive director Margaret Cobbold said: “The Trust works to support community and environmental projects across the UK and we were happy to be able to assist with the repairs to the hall. I look forward to seeing the project progress and this building remaining an important part of life in Culcheth.”
Work on the project will start in the New Year.