The trustees of Ashreigney Village Hall engaged the support of Catalyst, DCT’s consultancy service, to help them to prepare for a major fundraising campaign to renovate and modernise their much loved but tired Victorian building. Our first task was to help them to successfully apply for a small grant to cover the costs of community consultation activities, building surveyors and architectural designs in order to collect “investment ready” evidence for future funding bids. On a sunny Saturday in early July a community consultation drop-in event was attended by around 70 people who contributed over 130 suggestions and comments on the hall’s use, including from children, whose ideas included roller skating discos, water gun fights and a hot chocolate machine! However the suggestion that gathered the most children’s votes was the need for an outdoor play space. The issues and ideas generated at the event have been used to design a household survey, which was delivered to every household in the parish to ensure that parishioners have the opportunity to help influence the future of their Hall.
impact
The community in Ashreigny has been engaged and involved in the process of developing evidence which will be used to inform grant applications and fundraising campaigns. They feel a sense of ownership and are motivated to fundraise.