Following the Resolutions made held at our 2024 AGM, we have worked towards becoming a Charitable Incorporated Organisation. The new organisation is a registered charity, but this change helps protect the Village Hall and its assets for the future. Community Action Norfolk have been an enormous help as we have moved towards this goal, guiding us every step of the way. Our new charity has been registered with the Charity Commission, but we will have some way to go.
All costs incurred by the hall have continued to rise through the year and are under constant review aiming to reduce outgoing expenditure. Ongoing maintenance of the building due to its age continues to increase.
The play area continues to require ongoing maintenance/repairs during the year. We carry out regular checks on the play area and have an Annual inspection by ROSPA. We replaced the hedge along the play area with a fence to match the rest of the play area in September to avoid bird nesting time. We received a grant of £2000 from the Parish Council towards this work. We have been using QR codes to raise funds for the play area and posters around the area to let the residents know we look after the area. There is a misconception with many that the play area is owned and maintained by the Council. We do have a couple of pieces of equipment that now need further work, some of which has been quoted for. Shockingly this is very expensive, and once further quotes are received, we will have to decide whether we can justify the costs or remove the equipment. Two trustees attended a Play Area Inspection Training Course provided by Community Action Norfolk (“CAN”). Regular inspections are undertaken by the Trustees throughout the year.
We desperately need more Trustees who can help and to share the workload. Currently we only have 5, which is frankly not enough.
The installation of the projector and screen has led to more bookings in the small hall for training and presentations. We hope this will continue to grow.
We currently have 13 regular hirers, with most weekday evenings booked and we have availability during the weekdays.
Other event bookings continue to do well, with some months the hall booked every weekend.
This year we had the large hall floor resealed and purchasing a new buffer that washes and dries the floor, so the floor can be used immediately afterwards.
Discussions have continued with Mundford Football Club to provide a new licence for their use of the Facilities. Providing improved understanding of responsibilities on both sides, this has taken a bit of a back seat during our CIO application period.
The Football Club have continued to work towards their plans to build a club house beside the pitch for which they have full planning permission.
The website continues to be an accessible source of information regarding booking and group details. We appreciate all the help and guidance given by Rosemary Godfrey to keep the website updated.
We continue to use Instagram and Facebook to advertise our facilities and activities.
We have continued to have books in the foyer as a source of fundraising asking for donations for them.
This year we held the Hall of Stalls for the second time. It was a joint venture to raise money for the hall and Friends of Mundford School. We raised over £1000.
In July we attended the Friends of Mundford School Fete. We wanted to let the community know who we are and what we have to offer. It gave our groups chance to advertise, and we took some books which we received donations for. We are due to take part in this summer’s event too, if Trustee availability permits.
A fundraising event was held for Halloween by local resident Mr Emery, who raised £317.49 towards the play area.
The Crown Hotel donated £202.60 towards the play area following the Village Christmas Light event.
We have had issues this year with our car park being used as a general car park. This is a particular concern for some of our hirers who have paid for the hall (which includes full use of the car park) who then find limited car parking available. We have put up notices and again used QR codes to encourage donations for the upkeep.
Extract from the Trustees’ Annual report for the year ending 31-Mar-25
Mundford Village Hall 