Beech Village Hall is now open for smaller group activities that are permitted by government guidelines, as long as social distancing can be maintained. Regular dance classes will resume in the Hall from early August, followed by Pilates and Body Moves from September.
The first group to use the hall since lockdown was Sheila’s Readers, a reading group which has been meeting in people’s homes regularly for the last 25 years, and needed a venue that would be big enough to allow for socially distanced meetings for up to a dozen people.
The Hall’s Management Committee hope to be able to move to Phase 2, which includes weddings and other events for up to 30 people, later in the year. The village social programme will restart when larger events can be run safely and in accordance with government guidance.
The Hall has been made COVID-19 Secure for Phase 1 by putting in a one-way system with entry through the main door and exit through a fire exit, by restricting access to the toilet area, and by providing hand sanitiser and encouraging its regular use. Those who hire the Hall have been given comprehensive advice, including sanitising all surfaces before and after they are used, keeping windows open to maximise ventilation, and encouraging 2m social distancing and good respiratory hygiene. Users are advised not to come to the hall if they feel unwell, and arrangements are in place to handle the unlikely possibility that someone becomes ill while there.