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North Cerney Memorial Village Hall News January 2026

Thank you everyone who helped decorate the

hall both inside and out. It has been commented on and appreciated by the community.

The hall has been well used through December with a festive coffee morning, wonderful School Christmas fete with the children's choir, two packed school nativity performances and a sell-out Christmas Supper. Along with the excellent regular exercise classes, yoga, and choir the hall has been well used and is becoming ever more central to the life of the Churn Valley villages.

We are extremely grateful to Gigacleer who generously sponsored the raffle at the supper night.

We are delighted to welcome a new committee member. Nick Oakland has recently moved to North Cerney and wasted no time joining the Village Hall Committee. We would welcome more committee

members, so how about making it a new year's resolution to get involved. Come along to the AGM on Monday February 2nd to see what we do.

With the generous support the Parish Council we are now able to have an electrician install the cabling necessary to wire up the new light and fit an appropriate switch. This will be a fantastic improvement making it safer to use the front steps especially in the dark winter nights.

Diary Dates

• Tuesday January 6th 10.30am: Coffee Morning

• Monday February 2nd 7pm: Village Hall AGM

• Saturday May 16th: North Cerney Scamper: [ 5/10K run through the beautiful local countryside]

Village Hall Committee

North Cerney Memorial Village Hall News December 2025

It’s been a quieter month as we contemplate further means of fundraising after paying out for maintenance and longstanding repairs which were becoming urgent. Hence the Table Top sale organised by Fran and the Christmas supper on Dec13th. Incidentally, tickets for the supper are selling quickly and we are limiting numbers so please book your place before you miss out.

The cost of running the Village Hall and "keeping the doors open" can be approx. £4000 a year depending on the amount of oil used to heat such a vast area. The new windows purchased with an 80% grant from Enovert is improving heat retention which should help.

We are very fortunate to have secured further grants from the Parish Council, County Council and generous donations from local residents to enable us to meet health and safety /fire regulations and to improve the lighting, insulation, security and comfort of users.

This month, the Parish Council agreed to cover the cost of the recent plumbing work; the

instillation of new safety lighting over the steps and the purchase

of desperately needed storage cupboards.

The committee is also very grateful to our North Cerney Parish Councillors for recognising the need and agreeing to the purchase of a modern, powerful projector. The increasing requests for the use of a projector to enable presentations and to display images and photographs meant that committee members had to frantically source one from friends and family in order to secure valuable bookings. A booking by Gigiclear for a presentation on 4th Dec required a projector and screen.

As it will be a portable model, it will be offered for hire to residents of the Churn Valley.

Those who have recently used the hall have been increasingly complimentary about the

improved ambience, comfort and cleanliness and we hope

this will be

reflected in more

lettings and revenue.

Thank you Faye (FAB skills) based

in North Cerney for kindly making free of charge, a beautiful new roman blind for the bar. We are so lucky to have an amazing professional in our midst and she will shortly be offering to share her knowledge by running classes in the hall.

Should you have a skill you could share with the ongoing running of the hall, from maintenance, fundraising, supporting events, website etc please get in touch with any member of the committee. We will also be grateful for suggestions for future events.

Additionally, we would like to thank our loyal regular hall users. In particularly we are so lucky to have Rowena and Ollie Wakefield offering a range of excellent fitness classes.

The need for new committee members is ever more pressing but would be grateful for any level of involvement. We appreciate that young people are busy with work and families but you may have one vital skill that would greatly assist the team and there is considerable evidence to show that volunteering is conducive to happiness!

• Hiring

The village hall has the following items available for hire and very reasonable rates o Glasses, beer, wine tulips and champagne flutes;

o Tables (dining and heavy-duty trestles) and tablecloths; and

o Modern decorating tower.

Please contact our booking officer Lyubov or Kathy for prices and availability.

• Dates for the Diary o School Christmas Fete (See poster); o Sat 13th December at 18:30:

Christmas Supper Night; and o Saturday May 16th North Cerney Scamper: (5/10 K run through the beautiful local countryside).

Village Hall Committee

November 2025

Village Hall News

The committee’s focus over the last few weeks has been on repair and maintenance. The plumber had to be called out on three separate occasions to repair leaks in both the bar and kitchen. We are fortunate to have Chris from Daglingworth who is able to respond to emergency call-outs.

There has been continued tidying up of the outside spaces and all the roses have been planted. Thanks to John Martin who worked hard to dig very deep trenches behind the railings to ensure that there was plenty of compost to nourish all 25 plants.

Help with clearing and weeding the front, hedges, side garden and planting flower pots next year will really be appreciated. Is there anyone who could volunteer to spend an hour or so every now and then to keep the outside tidy and welcoming. PLEASE.

The new handrails up the steps are in place and are in keeping with the hand crafted safety railing as well as looking much smarter than the old ones. (See photo) Thank you to Spike Robbins for your creativity and hard work.

The floor is due for a polish and it will be one of the last tasks carried out by Sue Clegg who will sadly be leaving the area at the end of the month. Thank you Sue, you will be missed.

The monthly coffee mornings on the first Tuesday of the month continues to be well attended and increasing in numbers. It provides a good opportunity for a ‘catch up’ with others in the community and as an added bonus, a hand massage is offered free by Charlotte Chippendale who attends every session to pamper dry mits. It’s often the men who benefit the most! Only £3.00 for good cafetière coffee and a warm pastry or cake.

There is no doubt that the hall now feels warmer and better retains heat since the new windows have been fitted.

The Band and Dance night proved to be well attended despite anxiety about low ticket sales initially ……………..etc etc

Thank you to Cathy Martin who sourced the band and provided complimentary refreshments on the night and to others who helped make the evening a success, especially the busy bar staff.

Thank you to all who purchased tickets and supported the event. The much needed £500 profit will pay the Electricians needed to wire up the handsome lamp above the steps to increase safety when descending after evening events.

The next event will be a Table Top and Clothes Rail event on Sunday 23rd November from 10.00am to 4.00pm. An opportunity to recycle and sell pre-loved but no longer needed items and clothing etc. Also to sell homemade crafts and produce. Morning coffee, cakes and lunch time refreshments will also be on offer.

Please CONTACT FRAN on 07886939583 to book a table. (See poster)

On Saturday evening 13th December there will be a Christmas Supper Night.

Mulled wine, crackers, two course meal, mince pies and background Christmas music. All for only £15.00; a thank you to the community and their friends for supporting the hall over the last year. Tickets will be on sale at the next coffee morning and tabletop sale or from Kathy Rettie-Denness on 017881511.

Dates for your Diary.

Mon 3rd Nov at 7.00pm. Committee Meeting.

Tues 4th Nov at 10.30am Coffee Morning

Sun 23rd Nov at 10.30am. Table Top Sale

Sun 7th Dec at 12.00 noon North Cerney School Fete

Sat 13th Dec at 6.30pm. Christmas Supper Night

July 2025

New Safety Railings

The Village Hall Committee and friends joined together to organise the commemoration of the hall's centenary during the weekend of 7/8th June and given the wealth of positive comments, believe the effort to be worthwhile. Thank you to those of you who attended the opening event to hear Earl Bathurst talk about the initiatives to build community spaces following WW1 to enable parishioners to come together and re-engage socially. He asserted that this was equally important following the Covid shut down and that he hoped that successive committees will continue to enable the hall to serve the Communities of North Cerney and Neighbouring Parishes for another century.

The information about and photographs of the men remembered on the WW1 Memorial Plaque was central to the event. John Ewbank put an extraordinary amount of time and effort into researching and creating this touching archive display which will be treasured by the village. Thank you to John and Denise.

Also, thanks to Robert Brown who spent two days sharing his extensive vintage photographs of North Cerney. It was interesting to locate the old cottages and their replacements as well as sharing memories of the people who lived there.

Julius Giles displayed his remarkable military collection, we are thankful for his time in bringing them to the hall on Saturday.

Nav Stoton of Broadbridge Willow delighted us as she bent and twisted a bundle of willow which over the course of the day became an exquisitely crafted basket. We are grateful to her for donating it for auction in the evening; this raised a good sum for the hall's next project which is to repair the front wall.

Thanks to all the others who brought displays; arranged the flowers; compiled the raffle prizes and the refreshment team who served food and cleared all-day Saturday and had run out by Sunday!

Unfortunately, the outdoor events such as the children's activities and dog show were adversely affected by the rain, but Emms and Tina continued to stoically run the events. Those who participated enjoyed themselves.

Thank you also to bell ringers and the flower arrangers who abundently decorated All Saints Church; many visitors commentated on how pleased they were to have visted the beautiful, peaceful church.

Susan Fellows, our local P.S.O called for back-up support when she attended to assist with safe crossing of the road as she was shocked at the speed in which the cars travelled and will endeavour to have a speed camera presence in the near future.

We are really grateful to those of you who came to the hall, stayed for refreshments and donated so generously. Also, to the Jeffreies' for the donation from their Yard sale takings.

The weekend was not planned as a fund-raising event; donations being sought to cover expenses. However, the generosity of the community has provided sufficient funding for the repairs and painting needed after the hall's old rotting windows with secondary glazing have been removed and replaced with eco friendly, triple glazed windows which replicate the old ones in a similar colour.

The committee is thrilled to announce that the Enovert Community Trust (local waste management service provider) has granted 90% of the costs of this project (£20,000 total) and the new windows and doors are due to be fitted at the beginning of August. The oak front door will remain!

It is hoped that July will be a more restful period for the committee who continues in its appeal for new committee members. Anyone interested but not ready to commit is very welcome to attend (without obligation) our next committee meeting at 7.00pm on 8th July when, you can meet us and observe how we function. Please contact Kathy on 07881551820 to discuss.

The Village Hall Committee.

The new safety railing built and erected by Phil (Spike) Robbins looked fantastic and in keeping. He has nearly completed the work with handrail and gate to complete the entrance which will have a much-needed overhead light. We are grateful to him for freely giving his time to this project.

The ground will soon be prepared for planting the rose hedge. All the roses have been chosen for their hardiness and fragrance with the new King's Rose and Royal William on order as well as the tried and trusted Gertrude Jekyll, Princess Anne and Emily Bronte roses. Thank you to everyone who has donated towards the purchase of the roses and further contributions would support the completion of the project.

July 2025

Centenary Gala Evening

The Saturday evening Gala was a feast of local talented performances. The hall was full to bursting and resounded to clapping and laughter. It was a truly memorable night amusingly described "as an absolute blast" which pretty much says it all. Members of the Churn Valley players treated the audience to two hilarious comedy sketches interspersed with a clog dance by Lesley Thackeray accompanied by her husband Ben; a beautiful, atmospheric song from Amber Forde; a medley of songs from the musicals by West End performer Hannah Marie and a finale 'Elvis' tribute, performance by Ian Street who interacted with a riveted audience and had them on their feet dancing. So grateful to all the performers who shared their talents freely and to the audience who bought raffle tickets and donated so generously.

Monthly Coffee Morning

A further date for your diary is the monthly coffee morning on Tues 1st July. We're a friendly bunch who enjoy meeting new people, drink good coffee and eat freshly cooked pastry for £3.00. Sorry regular attendees for the price increase; the price of ground coffee has suddenly gone through the roof.

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