About Us | Scotton Village Hall

Our history

Prior to the First World War village meetings were held at the school premises in Lingerfield. Subsequently there has been a village hall in Scotton since the late 1920’s and possibly before that date.

In the 1970’s the original hall, which was located on Mire Syke Lane, was proving inadequate both in size and facilities and the decision was taken to build a new hall fit for the needs of the village.

In May 1975 the founding members of the new hall project, as it was known; Alan Blakey, James Binks and Edith Brook formed a charity in order to protect this valuable village asset. The land for the new hall was purchased from William Carr-Birkbeck a local landowner for the sum of £4,250.00.

Work commenced in March 1976 on the new hall with the work being undertaken by local village volunteer labour and by 1977 the hall, as we know it today, was completed and opened. The initial enthusiasm with which the hall was built continued with many local groups of amateur players etc. putting on Christmas Shows, Rock Concerts with the band Ancient Rock well into the 1980’s

However by the early 1990’s the steam had run out of the new hall project and the management committee was in disarray. The hall was in debt with the gas supply about to be disconnected due to the bills remaining unpaid. The Parish Council loaned £1000.00 to keep the hall afloat whilst the new management committee set about restoring the fortunes of the charity and preventing the further decline of the hall.

Slowly the hall was brought back to life with improvements to the toilets, a new kitchen, accessible toilet and new central heating boiler. Continuing support from regular hall users notably local residents, Knaresborough Bowling Club, Cliff Horner’s Whist Club, Dancing and Keep Fit groups, to name but a few; combined with Lottery Fund Grants made all this work possible.

When in 2008, a paid caretaker was employed for the first time, it became apparent that there were cancellations in winter by users suffering from a lack of heat in the hall. Eventually the decision was taken to install a new insulated roof to stem the flow of energy skywards. This would be a major and expensive project requiring substantial funding from outside bodies.

In 2011 a consultation survey of hall users and local residents was conducted as part of the grant application and to test the backing for this imaginative project. Surprisingly the survey revealed that users wanted the car park resurfacing as the priority but the committee concluded that energy conservation was a better bet for grant funding. In August 2014 with the aid of a £50k grant from BIFFA Awards the new insulated roof was installed which increased the comfort whilst reducing the gas bills. The carpark would have to wait for another day.

The car park was finally levelled and resurfaced in 2019 prior to the Covid closure. Installation of the bollard lights, on the carpark perimeter, was not completed until 2024 after the pandemic interruption.

In March 2020 COVID hit and the hall was temporarily closed. During the period of closure, the committee stepped down and without a group of committed Trustees the hall was at risk of permanent closure. Fortunately, new villagers stepped up in July 2020 and the hall was able to reopen in August, under strict social distancing guidelines. The task of recovering from the operational and financial disruptions caused by the pandemic was able to begin. 2020 and 2021 were very difficult years for what is essentially a public entertainment venue. By 2022 the new committee had overseen return of the hall to normal usage and revenue allowing running and maintenance costs to be supported without too great a deficit.

In 2025 a new committee was appointed when the incumbent chair, secretary and Treasurer moved out of the village. Each new committee brings with it new ideas and enthusiasm for growing the facilities offered by the hall as a village hub.

In 2025 a 1GB business broadband connection was installed at the hall with grant assistance from Community First Yorkshire under the Digital Inclusion Programme. A ‘digital hub’ has been established in the committee room for the instruction and use of the community.

The hall today....

Today the hall is well supported and used by a wide variety of local people from the village and the broader community beyond. The four strong management committee oversee the decision making process and liaises with the Charity Commission who, until the charity progresses to ICO status, have overall custodianship of the land and property.

The hall is currently in the process of transitioning from a unincorporated charitable organisation to an incorporated charitable organisation (ICO) which will relieve the Trustees from being personally liable for any debts or contractual obligations and improve the professional credibility of the charity.

The hall has no paid staff at present and uses subcontract cleaners, gardener and maintenance trades, as necessary, under the supervision of unpaid volunteer Trustees.

Whilst the hall has operated at a loss since the pandemic steps are now being taken to correct this. These steps include:

In 2025 the hire rates were increased by 15%. This was the first increase since 2019 and was determined not by reference to the CPI but by analysis of accounts and the minimum required to balance operational and maintenance costs.
Update of the hall’s website and access to online information.
Elevating the halls profile in the community through events such as coffee mornings and artisan fairs.
Recruitment of volunteers to help with event organisation.
Consideration of projects like EV car charging in the car park, solar power generation and heat pump heating systems. All these schemes are being encouraged by North Yorkshire Council, will attract grant funding and will, in the longer term, contribute to revenue/reduce operational costs.

The future success and viability of the hall is always uppermost in the committee’s mind and village based activities are at its heart. Currently there are several sessions vacant on weekday afternoons and mornings for Yoga, Modern Dancing or Pickleball for example. Help in promoting and marketing a new event is available through local contacts and special terms for start-ups will always be an option.

If you have an idea for a one-off village event or are considering starting a regular group there is a wealth of knowledge and experience on hand from committee members for you to tap into. The ongoing success of the hall will benefit everyone now and into the future.