History of South Cerney Village Hall taken from the Wilts and Glos Standard in 1925It
was on May 16th 1922 that a meeting of the parishioners was called to
consider an offer made by Captain E T Cripps, who had acquired an old
thatched barn in School Lane, and was now offering the site and the
building to the village for conversion to a village hall. At that
time the village had no communal hall that could adequately accommodate
the many social gatherings that were now happening in the life of the
village. However the state of the barn at that stage showed that some
imagination was needed to conceive that this derelict looking erection
was capable of affording the villagers what they had in mind, and they
may be excused if they did not immediately jump at what they freely
admitted to be a generous offer. There were, however, four solid walls
and a wonderful thatched roof which an estimate showed could be
converted into a suitable hall for the moderate sum of £660. A committee
were then appointed to consider this offer and any alternative
proposals but they were soon convinced that the offer by Captain Cripps
was much too good to be missed. The committee then set themselves
the task to raise the greater proportion of the money needed, a task
that was made considerably less difficult by the public-spirited action
of Mr Reginald A Berkeley, a local builder, who kindly undertook, as his
personal contribution to the funds, to do the whole of the necessary
building work without profit. The whole of the masonry was re-faced, a
handsome entrance porch added and with several stone mullioned and
leaded windows there resulted a building of a pleasing appearance and
thoroughly in keeping with its surrounding. The internal transformation
was equally complete. The walls were plastered and the lower portions
boarded to a height of between three and four feet. The original oak
principals supporting the roof were left intact and are still to be seen
till they disappear into the newly-laid ceiling. Artificial
lighting was initially provided by four oil lamps suspended from the
ceiling but pipes were laid under the floor for the use with acetylene
gas when footlights are required for a stage entertainment. A scenic
drop curtain, formerly in use at Cirencester, was a permanent fixture
and seating accommodation was provided by a large number of folding
chairs donated by the ex-servicemen of the village, who have a strong
representation on the committee. The building was opened on
Friday May 29th 1925 and was attended by the Countess of Suffolk,
Captain E T Cripps MC and many members of his family, the Reverend L
Westmacott, Vicar of Cirencester and the Girl Guides, Brownies and
school children. Many speeches were made and thanks given to all who had
contributed in the renovation of the hall and fitting out. The meeting
closed with the National Anthem.
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