Dalton and Gayles Village Hall AGM 

In light of the current circumstances due to Coronavirus, the committee of Dalton and Gayles Village Hall have decided to postpone the hall AGM, which has been held in March in recent years. This complies with the hall governance document which states that AGMs should be held annually, or as soon as practicable afterwards. The committee plan to circulate copies of a hall report and the accounts for the past year, to keep residents up to date. The current committee will remain in place until a proper AGM is held.

  Report from Dalton & Gayles Village Hall Committee - March 2020 to February 2021: Alison Brooks, Acting Chair

At the last Dalton and Gayles Village Hall AGM, held on Tuesday 10th March 2020, we had no idea of what would be in store for us all in the coming year.

 In the month leading up to the AGM, the hall had been busy, full of the sound of people coming together for catching up, company, entertainment, laughter, exercising minds and bodies. There had been monthly Luncheon, a band night with Holy Moly and the Crackers, Bridge Club, Zumba, Panto rehearsals and three nights of performances to a hall full of audience, Wine Circle, a Yorkshire Countrywomen’s Association meeting, Pilates, a Gayles Parish meeting and a Christening Party! Plans had been made for events for the next few months, none of which were to take place. There was the Parish Church Council AGM, a couple more Pilates sessions and a Yoga Retreat Day. Then as Coronavirus spread, lockdown began.

 Despite the lack of activity in the hall, there was plenty to keep the committee busy, getting to know and complying with all Government rules and regulations. Advice came from ACRE (Action with Communities in Rural England) and the hall’s insurance underwriters required setting up checks of the premises to be carried out at least weekly. A Covid-19 Risk Assessment was carried out, subsequently updated as necessary. Procedures were put into place to promote a Covid Secure hall. Special C-19 Conditions of Hire were drawn up for any potential hirers aiming to carry out activities permitted by the Government. Recommended notices were put up and a QR code was obtained and displayed.

 Temporarily relocation arrangements were made to house Holmedale Pre-School, as the sole users of the hall, for the last four weeks of their summer term - children’s happy voices filled the space and could be heard whilst they played and learned inside and out. After that all became pretty much silent again, until December the 6th, when the hall resonated with vibrations during the Soundbath. This has been the only event held since the first lockdown began on March 23rd. During a period of lesser restrictions, it was a welcome restorative hour for those who attended.

 The village hall committee have not been quiet and inactive. In April a committee “meeting” was held via email, but as we all became familiar with video meet ups online, the committee have “met” monthly from May onwards. As all income ceased, successful applications were made for the initial and second Covid-19 Business Grants - village halls were encouraged to do so. Recently, the current third set of grants has been applied for. Dave Matthewman took over as Treasurer when David and Margaret Taylor retired from the committee, as they moved out of the area to be nearer their family.

 Careful thought has been given to expenses and improvements. Decisions were made to purchase a new First Aid kit and a remote control which enables a frost setting to be activated on the radiators, to help reduce electricity costs. The external lights have been replaced with more efficient LED fittings and the roof coating has been inspected. The oven has been professionally cleaned; some internal painting work was organised; two radiators have had improvements made to fixings and all others have been checked. How to give support towards the maintenance of defibrillators in both villages has been looked in to.

 Regular safety checks continued: in-house monthly checks of fire equipment and routine outside agency inspections of the fire alarm, extinguishers, emergency lights and intruder alarm. The Fire Risk Assessment is being revised in consultation with a regional Fire Safety Officer and some improvements are being planned. The committee would like to thank Pam and Trevor Sheard particularly, for their input and time spent on many of the recent tasks. We’d really welcome a few extra hands on board too – for both the committee and for general looking after the hall and helping with events when they can happen again.

 With the aid of a Richmondshire District Council grant, a new external noticeboard and noticeboard post-box have been purchased and these should be appearing in place soon. As signs of an improvement in our current situation are increasing, we hope to advertise what’s going on in the hall again in the not-too-distant future. In the meantime, why not pause to sit on the new outside bench, which John Blackburn and Jean Walling presented in memory of their parents, Jack and Mary, and happy times had at the hall. You can imagine the sound of the good times we’ll be having together again soon.

Dalton and Gayles Village Hall Treasurers Report 2020.

As we all realise, the year has been very quiet with few activities being held due to the extended lockdowns and social distancing requirements.  Consequently, our income from events and hire of the hall has been very low but the committee has also been careful with hall funds.  Covid-19 grants provided most of our income in 2020.

The Annual Quiz got us off to our usual healthy start, providing income of £592

The ever-popular Panto (Peter Pan) generated a total income of £2,134, from which a donation of £442.00 was presented to Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, which owns the rights to JM Barrie's play.

The major income item in the year was Covid-19 grants totaling £11,334.00, for which we are very grateful as our income from our regular activities has been low but then so have the costs of arranging village hall events.

The Village Hall also a provided the facility to temporarily hold funds on behalf of the Gayles Defibrillator.  In addition, the committee agreed to make a modest donation of £43.39 to the cause.  The credits and debits relating to this span three financial years (2019 – 2021) but all funds are now returned and there is a zero balance on this arrangement.

Providing a temporary home for Holmedale Pre-School while their usual hall in Ravensworth was being renovated, provided some additional income during the summer

The major costs to the village hall remain the ongoing maintenance that is required and electricity for heating.  Electricity charges alone amounted to £1780 in 2020.  The major improvements this year included redecoration of the Supper Room and entrance hallway.

Excluding grants, our income was only slightly below our expenditure, so that is a good result for a difficult year.

Looking ahead, we should continue to be careful with hall funds because there are several foreseeable substantial maintenance tasks required, including replacement of the water main connection, further maintenance of gutters and of the hall roof.  Whilst none of these are currently known to be an imminent risk, we should be prepared.

A short summary of the major items of income and expenditure

 All activities and events are cancelled until further notice.

Dalton and Gayles Village Hall Committee will currently only consider bookings from commercial hirers who can demonstrate that they can follow Covid-19 procedures laid down by their governing body/organisation or trade; can comply with all current COVID requirements; and can provide insurance policy details.