Hi Im preparing a (for want of a better word) for 15 rural communities in yorkshire to increase the value of their community building be it a village hall, church etc. Aim is to increase access to services, more members of the community using the building, more volunteers and community ownership of the building, linking to parish plans. Can you advise if there are any simple business plans for communities which I can adopt for such a purpose. Thanks

I am Secretary/Treasurer of a village hall trust in S.E.Cumbria. Our village post office is listed for closure, and our hall has been named as the Host for a three half-day a week Outreach service. Our details have been given on the Post Office's leaflet "Change to your local Post Office branch" despite our not having agreed to this use for the Hall. The Chairman wrote to the Post Office on Feb 28th asking for answers to a number of points before we can even consider the question fully, since the committee is unanimously against the Post Office closure, and we can see a number of objections to the use of the Hall. I can probably get the Chairman's permission to pass copies of his letters to the Post Office to you. Specifically we asked for a response to the first letter by March 18th, which by chance was the date of the Post Offices announcement of this area's PO changes, and of our AGM, and the first committee meeting of the current year. No response was forthcoming, although a phone call said that they still had to get answers to two of our questions.

Following the committee meeting a further letter was sent to the Post Office which should have arrived today, expressing our disappointment at the lack of a reply.

Can you make any comment on what actions are available to us? How can we get a response from the Post Office? and what actions could we take which might in any way influence the Post Office's decision on the closure?

The questions we have asked relate in part to the fact that having the Post Office in the Hall will affect Hall usage over the year, although not on a regular weekly basis. The Hall is one large room with no small subsidiary room which could house the Post Office. Amongst our concerns are the inability to have building work, repairs and decorations carried out readily if the PO are in occupation for part of three days a week (We are in the last stages of grant seeking for an overhaul of the kitchen which will block access to the Hall for several weeks once it starts). The local primary school has no hall and uses our Hall for rehearsals and performance of their Christmas concert (4 full days' use of the Hall). A charity textile collection for the Air Ambulance uses the Hall over two days 3 times a year, and there are other uses which would be restricted, or even become impossible if the PO gets in.

We feel that we are being railroaded into a decision which we don't want. The PO will not tell us what rent they would be prepared to pay if they use the hall, but they obviously expect us to roll over and give in, because of the effect of NOT having a PO in the village.

Personally, I object strongly to the PO - a large business - attempting to force a small volunteer-run body, a registered charity, to provide them with space for their business, when there are still commercial premises in the village which night seem more appropriate for the task, which have not yet been approached.

I would appreciate receiving any comments you could make which might help us with this problem.

We are looking for funding for a replacement Village Hall we would like to also consider adding a play area for young children. Should we be looking at being a Social Enterprise

Please could you advise us on the legislation for electrical checks for village halls. We were under the impression that halls needed a major electrical check every five years and PAT testing carried out annually. A local electrician however has told one of our village halls that they need an annual check of the village halls electrics. Please can you clarify!