Clearing and digging

I am a broken man!  Today started at 07:50 with me looking to intercept delivery and pay for a skip.  The skip was already there (I had coned off the area the evening before).  The morning saw Mowgli, the Veveri and Akela attack the mess of concrete in prep for a new tank base.

We had just stopped (Akela's wheel barrow died and after a moving ceremony was placed in the skip) when Steve G pitched up.  He worked like a trojan and Akela re-joined him.  Martin Farmer pitched up and he attacked the job viciously.  Frank joined us and by ten to six in the evening, we are ready for hard core to be placed.

We need to buy some shuttering for the sides of the hole, but progress today has been massive.  A big thank you to all who helped.

At the start of the day, Dan and Akela placed significant amounts of clobber (that had been in the Scout garage) from the stage, into the loft.

I hurt.  I am not used to this kind of hammering, but I can say that we have made significant progress towards getting the heating back on-line.

Heating and Buffs

Akela put up a new notice board in the hall.  Its a minor job but we needed somewhere to post our PRS certificate and adverts from hall users.

Yesterday evening, I was presented with a cheque for £500 in support of our work on the hall.  The cheque came from the ROAB (Buffs).  This is a lot of cash from such a small charitable group, but they can see what we have done with the hall and are keen to support us.

A skip arrives tomorrow (Saturday) to enable us to remove rubble in preparation for cleaning up the area around the oil tank.Working parties are in play from Saturday afternoon, also on Monday and Tuesday.

A revisit of the guttering estimate (forced by seeing rotten and damaged wood and moving to new gluttering and boards) has seen an increase in cost, but the work should start late next week.

Sunday, Sunday looks good to me

Sunday morning saw a sorry working party of two struggle with cleaning up the side of the hall.  It became clear that we need a mini digger and a skip...  After arriving at this understanding, we went up into the loft and adjusted the size of the racks (grinding wheel in play) and added shelves. 

The stage has started to see a reduction in the volume of kit on show and we will soon be back to seeing the stage curtains in full glory.

First aid and racking

New hall first aid kit placed in kitchen (we were using our camp kit, but since this is used on camp, we needed another one).  New cuts and burns kit, plus face mask mounted on first aid cupboard.

Loft cleaned out.  Racking placed in the loft and part assembled.

All toilets bleached and sinks and urinals treated with Dettol.

Parish council vote to support us

Whilst it is late in the day, yesterday evening saw the Parish Council make a graceful U-turn as they agreed to financially support the Memorial Hall project.  Subject to six conditions, they voted to release £5000 to be used on hall works.  Invoices need to be made out the Chiseldon Parish Council and this suggests the £5K figure is net, not gross...  The invioice is winging its way to us (it already has Chiseldon parish Council written on it!).

Next jobs are write a TOR for the hall management committee, get the guttering work booked in (already have a quote) and explore splitting the water supply (from the club) costs.

Martin Farmer is on the case with the heating and popped in again after keep fit.  Rainbows went ahead prior to keep fit, so things are OK on the cashflow front.

The best news is that our reserves are now in tact and we can get on with the job of scouting and giving local kids fun and adventure.

Heating phase 1

A day of effort from Martin Farmer has brought about cold water running through the heating system, the supply pipe unblocked and a new pump fitted.  The cracked radiator could not be repaired, so a modern radiator was supplied and fitted.  This is exactly what we intended to achieve and is a major step to getting the heating up and running.

Several water minor leaks in the kitchen were resolved by pipe replacement (the compression fittings were leaking).

The pump has been left on and I will check for leaks / paint the new pipe work during tomorrow.

Beavers and Scouts are now hall users

Beavers and Scouts met in the memorial hall last night.  Draycott Road came alive with people and vehicles.  The lights illuminating the front of the building and children making 'fun' noises in the hall caught me unawares and I (plus a number of others) realised that the hall is truly back in use and already has a life and character of its own.

Fire practices were held and the bus shelter works very well as an assembly point for all sections.

Chiseldon Sports & Social Club have loaned us some more plastic chairs, so we don't have to use the conference chairs in Scout activities.  This is just another example of how supportive the club has been.

There were no issues with the hall but we do now have to clear the stage and stow kit.

H did a fantastic job on her first evening as Scout troop leader.  She was very well prepared, had thought about issues and challenges of taking over and set out a structured and engaging stall from the off.  Well done to Heather.