A South Lakeland village hall is now warmer and weatherproof thanks to an £8,000 grant from a renewable energy developer.
The roof at Old Hutton Public Hall, near Kendal, had begun to lose an increasing number of its slates, leading to growing concern about both the safety of people visiting the building, including children from the neighbouring primary school, and the need to make sure that the building’s integrity could be maintained.
A grant from the community fund linked to OnPath Energy’s nearby Armistead Wind Farm has now paid for the reroofing project, with specialist Kendal-based contractor Bracken Roofing commissioned to install new local grey/green slates on the roof.
The grant has also covered the cost of fitting modern insultation underneath the slates, which will help the hall keep its costs down and reduce its carbon footprint by cutting down its energy usage.
It’s the second time that Old Hutton Public Hall has received support from the Armistead fund, with a £3,000 grant in 2017 helping to pay for the installation of a new boiler, which is still going strong today.
Built in 1914, the hall is used for community events and activities, including indoor bowling, a gardening club, church lunches, a youth club and meetings of the local Women’s Institute.
It is run by a dedicated team of local volunteers, and aims to keep charges as low as possible to ensure it is accessible to the whole community.
Stephen Capstick, treasurer at Old Hutton Public Hall, said: “The roof has done its job for many decades, but the weather had clearly taken its toll and we’d begun to lose a growing number of slates.
“It was becoming clear that something needed to be done before the situation got out of hand, and with so many people and groups using the building, there was also a safety aspect to the situation, which made finding a solution a real priority for us.
“Covering the cost of this essential work ourselves would have meant using up all our resources, so we’re hugely grateful to OnPath Energy for coming forward to support us once again through the Armistead Wind Farm Fund.
“The new roof look so much better than before, while being able to add insultation where there previously wasn’t any will make a big difference to the temperature inside the hall and to the amount of energy we need to use to maintain it.”
Lynsey Stephenson, communication manager at OnPath Energy, added: “Old Hutton Public Hall has been at the heart of local community life for more than a century and we’re very pleased to play our part in helping Old Hutton Public Hall maintain this invaluable position for many more years to come.”
Environmental and community projects in the vicinity of the Armistead Wind Farm which are interested in applying to its community fund should first contact the fund manager via [email protected] or on 0191 378 6342 to confirm that their group or project is eligible.
