Tunstead & Sco-Ruston

There was a presentation at the last Tunstead Village Hall meeting. The presentation described the results of a feasibility study that was undertaken to determine the viability of purchasing a replacement modular building.

A lot of hard work has gone into raising funds for a new village hall.  Several attempts to apply for a Lottery Grant have not come to fruition, so a new direction was sought, especially as the old modular building is fast becoming beyond economic repair. It was for that reason that the suggestion to replace it with a stock modular building was muted. The village has now raised £30,000. It was felt that the time had come to take a serious look at purchasing a replacement, so the feasibility study was commissioned.

The presentation started with a review of the needs of the village. It continued by discussing how the needs of the village can be resolved through use of an updated modular building. The presenter felt that our village could demonstrate “need” in a significant way; namely isolation. Tunstead and Sco Ruston do not have local access to services and facilities, and villagers have to travel to use those services. In a world where every ounce of emission, pollution, and energy is measured through a concern for the environment, having the ability to host some of those services and facilities within the village will give significant leverage on obtaining a grant to supplement the money the village has so far raised.

It was shown that £30,000 does go a long way towards purchasing  a new building, but it does not cover a large number of other costs associated with the installation of such a building. The presentation continued by looking at the ways in which the significant short-fall could be raised; through grants. It was shown that grants can come from a number of sources; not just the Lottery, using the Norfolk County Council Community Fund Service. Using this service it would be possible to identify grant suppliers and apply for a number of smaller grants to fulfil specific areas of need; both financial and social.

The next step is to create a project plan for the replacement modular building, and publish it; seeking responses and commitment to the plan.

Here are the highlight slides used in the presentation. Hilights of feasibility study

If you have any constructive thoughts on this subject please use the comments section at the bottom of the page or contact the Village Hall Committee.