December 2023

16 Buckden Roundabout December 2023 Village News Bookings This month we have several dance hires over the Christmas week and also the Blood Donor Session on 8 th as well as our regular hirers. Please check out the Hall ’ s calendar of events at www.buckdenvillagehall.co.uk click on Booking then Check Availability. Yoga has returned to Buckden Village Hall! This runs each Tuesday at 6:15pm and is an all - level Vinyasa flow yoga class. No need to block book, you can simply attend on the weeks you wish to attend. For more infor- mation and to book please visit www.judesyogawellbeing.com A very busy month for grounds maintenance at the Village Hall New mower Last month we at last took delivery of our new mower for the playing fields! Thanks to a very generous grant from the Football Association in conjunction with Buckden Junior Football Club plus a supplemental grant from the Cam- bridgeshire Community Fund, we were able to purchase a new machine to replace our 30 - year - old war horse which was falling apart. The new mower is more suited to our grass type and so will provide a smoother cut. It also cuts the steep banks which were previously done by a specialist contractor, so we have saved money on grounds mainte- nance. Many thanks to everyone who helped us source and purchase the new mower. Improving the playing field Our new mower was in action again later in the month. You may have noticed the 100 tonnes of sand and topsoil in our car park and the small digger. The sand/topsoil was spread on the playing field to improve the drainage and is part of a joint 5 - year maintenance grant in partnership between Vil- lage Hall Trust, the Football Association and Buckden Junior Football Club. Afterwards, the grass was verti - drained by ProLawn to improve drainage, reduce compaction and in- crease oxygen to the grass roots. Many thanks to Richard Salmon at ProLawn for donating so much of his volunteer time to help maintain our grounds. Boot scrapers You may have noticed the new boot scrapers outside the sports pavilion which were joint funded by the Village Hall Trust and Buckden Junior Football Club. It was a busy month for grounds - keeping! Thanks to every- one for their help. 2023 has been another busy and challenging year for us at Buckden Village Hall. A really big thank you to everyone who has used us in the past year and to all of you who will use us in the future. Your support is massively appreciated Have a very Merry Christmas and best wishes for 2024! Jo Harvey, Hall Manager Email: admin@buckdenvillagehall.co.uk Tel: 01480 811101 Please call or email to arrange any appointments Office hours: 9am – 2pm The Hall office will be closed from Saturday 23 rd December until Tuesday 2 nd January 2024. There is a 24 - hour answer- phone so any messages left, or emails sent, during this time will be picked up on 2 nd . Burberry Road, Buckden, Cambridgeshire, PE19 5UY Tel: 01480 811101 www. buckdenvillagehall.co.uk email: admin@buckdenvillagehall.co.uk Village Hall awarded Hallmark 2 In late September the Village Hall underwent an appraisal of its govern- ance, administration and policies by the government body Cambs ACRE (Action for Communities in Rural Eng- land). Hallmark is a nationally recognised quality assur- ance scheme designed for community buildings that was developed by ACRE during the 2000s. It aims to support, establish and reward good practice and encourage im- provement in established customs and procedures. Our Hallmark 1 award (strategic and financial manage- ment) was renewed last year and in October we proudly received Hallmark 2 (HSE, security, regulatory & govern- ance policies). We are now starting work on achieving Hallmark 3!