Parkside Hall AGM 20th April 2015
2014/15 has been the first full year of operation since the Hall closed for refurbishment in spring 2013. It has been a busy year for Trustees, Staff and Volunteers who have successfully run the hall for the local community.
There have been no major issues or concern as we have worked progressively to adapt to meet the needs of Hirers and make the operation of the hall as smooth as possible for Volunteers and Staff.
In December 2014 the Council decided to withdraw from the lease of the Nottingham Rooms which were knocked down by the Council, leaving the ground in need of remedial work. This has taken some time but the whole area will be converted into a car park this summer.
As part of the decision also , the Council no longer provide clerical support to Parkside Hall directly and alternative arrangement for administration have had to be made A ‘Liaison Committee’ consisting of Trustees and Council continues to meet regularly to keep each other informed.
The operation of Parkside Hall is a full time activity and we are fortunate to have a small team of staff & volunteers that runs the hall. Many people do not understand the demands of running a community venue which requires £35k just to operate per year.
A summary of the activity we have worked on this year is as follows:
- Oversee the end of year 1 snagging and agreement to final payment of approx. £12k
- Received a donation of £6k from Tom Barden which has allowed us to provide new Theatre lighting and sound mixing systems in the Hall. Many thanks to Tom for this donation.
- Purchasing a new cleaning tool to speed up floor cleaning and polishing, cost approx. £1.7k
- Closely with Alameda and Firs schools with respect to the Safe Route to Schools access.
- Steve Todd continues to work on our behalf with Central Beds to progress the resurfacing of the car park and land recently used by the Nottingham Rooms. An agreement with the Coroner’s Court in for them to use some car parking spaces during the day will allow for a full resurfacing of the car park in the summer 2015.
- Once the resurfacing has been completed, the Trustees will consider other parking plans.
- together with the provision of an external storage.
- A sound survey has been carried out to improve sound proofing in Meeting Room 2.
- A large television will provide advertising and audio/visual capability.
- A bar shutter will be fitted to improve the operation and security of the of the
- Signage to recognise the local organisations that have financially supported Parkside during the refurbishment.
- Changed toour pricing structure in January with an across the board increase of 10%. We have not adverse feedback from our hirers.
- Sue Cannon has picked up the admin and payment work from Donna Searle, we are very grateful to Sue has accepted the role as a voluntary unpaid position. Our thanks go to Donna for all her support over the years.
- Margie Hudson continues to be our marketing manager has put on several very popular and financially successful events. The comedy night and food fayre are now popular events in the Ampthill calendar.
- Brian Russell has now taken over the treasury reins from Alan Cardwell. Alan has put in a tremendous amount of work before and over the period of refurbishment.
- Eileen Summerfield continues to act as our Bookings Officer and works tirelessly to ensure we maximise bookings and drive revenue for the hall.
- Jenny Mackay joined the team as Weekend/Volunteer manager in February. She has a helped us to look at existing processes and made suggestions for improvements. again.
- Glass washers and dish washers have now been provided in the Bar and Kitchen.
- Steve Todd has been a stalwart member of the team leading on a variety of issues, his professional background has been an asset to Parkside and he has managed to take on and resolve many issues regarding the operation of the hall.
- My thanks also extend to the eternally cheerful Linda White, supported by her husband Terry, who acts as cleaner and Caretaker at Parkside. Despite many challenges she remains upbeat and positive in the face of many difficult situations
- As part of our ongoing drive to improve the operation of the hall we have worked closely with Anthony Northey, Nigel Milway and Mark Smith to draft a new Charity Incorporated Organisation to replace our long outdated constitution
My final thanks go to all those not metioned in this report, especially the volunteers who help us run the hall. You all know who you are. The people of Ampthill would not have such a splendid venue if were not for the time and effort you all put in.
Andy Wood
Chairman – Parkside Community Hall