Nearly £100,000 has been awarded to three community groups in North Herts to help them make substantial changes to their buildings to better serve local residents.
Under delegated authority (on 15 October) following a meeting of the Council’s Community Facilities Capital Grants Panel (on 22 September), £96,000 was granted in capital funding.
Letchworth Garden City Community Group was awarded £36,000* towards replacing the heating system in Mrs Howard Memorial Hall. The existing boilers break down frequently during winter and users often report how cold the building is. Although there have been a variety of repairs over the years, the two boilers are becoming obsolete, with parts difficult to source and neither meet current efficiency standards. The new heating system is expected to reduce energy bills with a lesser impact on the environment. The building in Howard Park, Norton Way South, is owned by the Council, and leased to the group.
Hall Manager Bobby Singh said: “Every winter, there has been a huge concern whether the heating system would work from one week to the next. The building caters for some of the most vulnerable families and people locally. This funding will allow us to help support their needs, by installing a modern heating system, that can be relied upon, to create a warm and welcoming environment within the building. To receive this funding has been absolutely brilliant for the Memorial Hall and for the local community.”
Letchworth Corner Sports Club was awarded £10,000* towards the refurbishment of their changing and shower facilities at their premises in Whitethorn Lane, Lordship. The Community Amateur Sports Club provides its members with facilities for hockey, cricket, football, bowls, lacrosse and weight-lifting. The current condition and design of the men’s changing room and showers provide inadequate ventilation and do not meet Covid-19 safety requirements. By providing a diverse range of sports, the club contributes to improving the physical and mental health of its members through exercise, fun and friendship. Members are contributing £13,000 towards the refurb.
Ian Hammond, Club Treasurer, said: “As a not-for-profit Community Amateur Sports Club we provide local residents the opportunity to enjoy a range of sporting activities as well as a pleasant social family environment. Awards such as this enable us to improve our facilities and increase opportunities for the local community. We are delighted to be awarded this grant and our sincere thanks to North Herts Council for supporting our ongoing refurbishment project at Letchworth Corner Sports Club.”
Therfield, Royston and Kelshall Sports Association (TRAKSA) was awarded £50,000* towards replacing their pavilion with a more sustainable structure. The association, which runs the Recreation ground in Therfield on behalf of Royston Cricket Club and Therfield and Kelshall Sports Association, was awarded this amount in principle in March 2019 but the Covid-19 pandemic brought delays to the project and meant that they didn’t use the money within the 12-month timeframe so they had to effectively re-apply. The 70-year-old pavilion is home to cricket and football clubs as well as Royston Runners and Parkfit and is used by several other outdoor activity classes as well as Therfield First School. Around 1,200 people currently use the pavilion but it is thought the new energy-efficient building providing all new changing, toilet and shower facilities, and separate areas for match officials, will be used by an additional 2,000 people. The overall project cost to replace the current pavilion has reduced from £156,000 to £75,000 and is pending planning permission.
Nigel Reader, Deputy Chairman, said: “We are delighted to be awarded this grant by North Herts Council. It will allow us to develop a new pavilion for the use of Royston Cricket Club, and Therfield and Kelshall Vets Football and Cricket Clubs and for use by the wider community. The pavilion at Therfield has been in use for around 60 years, but no longer meets today's requirements. The new pavilion will provide increased changing facilities including for officials, separate changing rooms and showers as well as additional accessible toilet facilities.”
Councillor Judi Billing, Executive Member for Community Engagement, said: “It’s wonderful that we are able to support these community facilities to provide a wealth of services to enhance the lives of our residents.
Mrs Howard Memorial Hall is not just a community centre but a community hub, a versatile building richly steeped in history. As Letchworth’s first public building opened in 1906, it continues to provide a range of uses today, for baby and toddler groups, exercise and hobby classes for young people and adults, even dog training. The new heating system will help ensure the building can stay in use well into the future.
“Sporting activities have such a positive impact on mental and physical health and really help people come together. Team sports and sporting hubs have been greatly missed during the pandemic, and offer a substantial benefit to people’s wellbeing and local community spirit. We’re glad to help support Letchworth Corner Sports Club and Therfield, Royston and Kelshall Sports Association improve and update their facilities for the benefit of members for many years to come.”
More information on community facilities capital grants
*subject to completion of the necessary formalities
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