Queen Victoria’s village halls given £3m restoration boost

VILLAGE halls originally built to celebrate Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee are set to be revived for the 21st century with funds to help them offer yoga, basket weaving and Wi-fi.

The £3million government fund, launched to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, is expected to help run-down village halls become community hubs for post offices, clubs and activities, as well as meeting places to tackle loneliness in rural communities.

In 1897, and the years afterwards, village halls were built across the country in honour of the Queen’s 60 years on the throne.

Often called “Victoria” or “Jubilee” halls, these included a hall in the Hampshire village of Hartley Wintney, opened by Lady Calthorpe on Oct 20 1898, and the Jubilee Hall in the village of Newton on the Moor, Northumberland, which was built from locally quarried stone. Now, 125 of them will be revived using the funds, with the programme supplying grants over three years until 2025.

A previous round of funding in 2019 to mark the centenary of the Armistice paid for villagers in Sherborne, Dorset, to refurbish the Trent Memorial Hall and install new eco-friendly air-source heating. It now hosts pilates, dog training and quilting classes.

In Gotherington, Gloucestershire, £20,000 from the fund paid for a refurbishment, and it now hosts film nights, annual wildlife trails, mindfulness sessions, yoga and bingo.

Hepple Village Hall in Rothbury, Northumberland, received funds for decoration and roof repairs. It now hosts basket weaving and table tennis clubs.

Many rural areas have lost community hubs as local shops struggle to compete with out-of-town supermarkets and employment on farms declined amid tight margins and rising automation. The closure of banks and cuts to public transport have also left people struggling to meet others and get around.

High house prices also mean younger people and families struggle to find a place to settle down, with rural property prices rising faster than those in urban areas over the past few years.

Lord Benyon, the minister for rural affairs, said: “Village halls are the centrepiece of rural life, and funding their renovation to mark the Jubilee is a fitting tribute to the Queen’s service.

“In a changing world, they are important facilities for community groups, social clubs and local services. This funding will ensure they are central to the fabric of our villages for many more years to come.”

David Emerson CBE, chairman of the rural charity Action with Communities in Rural England, said: “This is an announcement that is especially appropriate in the week that thousands of halls across the country are hosting local celebrations of the Royal Jubilee.”