| The patio at Hempstead Village Hall has been exceptionally well used since it was opened in
2013. Adjacent to it lay the old Pre-School Play Area, abandoned since the Pre-School shut in July 2019.
Play areas need constant maintenance and ROSPA approval to make sure equipment is safe for children to
use. The play equipment facility introduced at the top of the Glebe three years ago serves all the children of the 
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 | A straight view of the patio along its full length, with playground gone. |
village, so the old Pre-School area by the hall, suitable only for small children, was unnecessary once the school had closed. The Management Committee decided to remove it and extend the patio as this would give better service to hirers of the hall.
We accepted a quote from Joe Day, a young man who had recently started out with his own business and who had been involved with the construction of a driveway at a new house in the village. The quality of his work was known to be excellent.
To allow Joe to commence we needed to clear away the old wooden structures and fencing that surrounded the Play Area and a volunteer group did this on September 5. Joe started on site on Monday September 20 anticipating that it would take three weeks to complete.
As with all ideas, when one comes along, there are usually more. A wedding reception had taken place
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| earlier in the summer on the patio on a hot day and in a post -event conversation, it was suggested that an awning over the rear patio doors of the hall would have been very useful. Within days, a grant opportunity from RCCE’s Covid CB Fund had popped up offering funds for exactly that kind of initiative. We jumped on the chance and were delighted to be awarded all the costs we needed. Thank you Rural Community Council of Essex (RCCE)!
Saffron Shutters and Blinds, a family business in Haverhill, supplied the awning and were very helpful in buiding us through design and installation decisions.
With this work, we also decided to add some external lighting to the patio with outdoor sockets and another external light on the building. Now, parties can have
twinkly lights, or electric BBQs as part of their evening’s entertainment.
Of course, there was muck and upheaval while all this work went on, and we apologised to regular hirers for the disruption which we tried to keep to a minimum. |
Diggers and materials deliveries came and went and the old Indian stone slabs which had weathered beautifully, were sold to help with costs. Profits from a bric-a -brac sale in Thaxted also assisted with funding the project, plus a generous contribution from Hempstead Parish Council.
Particular attention was paid to drainage, as the patio is set at the bottom of a sharply sloping bank at the bottom of the sloping Glebe. On time, after three weeks and
some back-breaking lifting, Joe delivered our new-look patio with which we are absolutely delighted.
If you wish to book Hempstead Village Hall for an event, all the information and booking forms are on the Hempstead website at www.hempstead-essex.org.uk and
if you would like Joe’s contact details for a project of your own, they are:
Joe Day, J A Construction
E: jmarley@hotmail.co.uk
M: 07801 587264.
DIANA FROST
For a printable version please click here.
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