Upton Village

South Oxfordshire

Help is Required

YOUR HELP, ASSISTANCE, PARTICIPATION is needed with one of the
following activities –
1 Cakes and Biscuits – could you bake a delicious item for sale at the
Village Hall Café to sell during the Uptonogood cycle event? Donations
can be brought to the hall in the morning of the event (15th June.) Or
brought to Chris Traynor, Pentrose, Fieldside the day before.
2. Could you spare some time to help serve in the Hall Café selling
teas and cakes for the cyclists? Please contact Lucy
(lucinda.mason@btinternet.com) if you could spare an hour of your
time on this day.
3 .Upton Village Hall Amenities Trust have a vacancy for a new
member to join this team, who are responsible for the maintenance
and bookings for the village hall. The workload and time involved are
not excessive. If interested please contact

Rob Traynor at
ronyart5@hotmail.com

Upton Village Hall Amenities Trust Chairman’s Update, July 2023

Finances
The hall finances continue to remain in a healthy state with funding for the
toilet refurbishments as well as other smaller projects (tidying up the patio
area, de weeding and refilling gaps with sand cement) available.
Thanks to the volunteers Chris Traynor, Brian and Giulia Rippon, Ali
Lewington, Kim Gould, Debbie Paul, Victoria Griffiths, Gillian Collins and
Gerogie Mason for their support and fundraising efforts during Uptonogood.
The hall remains in good decorative condition with some minor painting
required. The paint is available and this will be carried out by one of the
committee members.
Bookings
There has been a return to party bookings as well as the long term regulars
and booking for the kitchen by Style Acre for training their staff. We are
pleased that the return of the Drop in Coffee Morning is starting again –
first session 27th July 10:00 – 11:00
Development Projects
Work on replacing the poor guttering has begun (this will also include
installing the water butt for the Nature Garden).
The working group, looking into the refurbishment of the ladies and
disabled loos are now looking into local builders and a few names have
been put forward. There is no urgency for this work (the toilets are
functional) and any work would be best carried out during the quieter
period, after the summer.
Caretaking
Cleaner still employed.
Rob Traynor
Chair, UVHAT

Upton Village Hall Amenities Trust Latest News

UVHAT held its most recent meeting on the 14th June 2023.
At this Meeting a New Trustee was appointed Mrs Nicola Hall and Mrs Jacqui
Reid stepped down from her position as a Trustee and as Secretary of
UVHAT.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank Jacqui for all her hard work
and dedication to the Upton Village Hall Amenities Trust over the years and
express how much her presence will be missed, although we appreciate
that she has agreed to continue handling bookings for the Village Hall until
a more permanent solution is in place.
Also, at this meeting, the following positions were elected from within the
Board of Trustees, Chair, Deputy Chair, Treasurer and Secretary. Please
find the newly updated list of trustees and their positions.
Mr R Traynor (Chair) Mr B Rippon (Deputy Chair)
Mr A Dyson (Treasurer)
Mr B Shaw (Secretary) (Appointed Member representing Upton Parish
Council)
Mrs N Hall Mrs L Evans
Mrs L Mason Mrs J M West
Mr B Heneghan (Appointed Member representing Upton Parish Council)
As always If you would like to contact the trustees about anything
regarding The Village Hall please email trustees@uptonvillagehall.co.uk or
if regarding a booking or use of the hall please email
bookings@uptonvillagehall.co.uk.
Treasurers report
Receipts show that hires are slightly up on last year with one off hires
doubled in the year meaning that booking receipts are up 25% with
fundraising also up 25% on last year.
Expenditure reports show that costs in general are comparable to last year,
with the exception of energy which has seen the electricity bill almost
tripled. (This increase does not account for the undercharging that was
discovered which will be detailed in the next report.) There has been no
capital expenditure yet this year, but plans remain to refurbish the ladies
and disabled toilets as well as other key maintenance projects.
In Summary the bank balance still looks healthy, energy bills not
withstanding, at £34,842.00 as of the 31st March 2023.
Maintenance Report
Guttering has been bought to replace the broken and damaged parts
around the hall. As part of the repair project, it is planned to install a new
Soak away and attach the water butt for the Nature Garden.
Items repaired since the last meeting include the outside tap, door hinges
and stops.
Quotes are being sought for the following items, blown windows, bin store
and the women’s and disabled bathrooms.

Upton Village Hall Amenities Trust Chairman’s Report, April 2023

Existing members include: Rob Traynor, Jacqui Reid, Brian Rippon, Elizabeth
Evans, Lucy Mason, Andrew Dyson, Brendan Heneghan and Ben Shaw
Regular hall hirers are returning and bookings continue to come in on a
regular basis. There have been no major problems requiring large capital
expenditure and UVHAT remains in a good financial position.
The hall remains in good condition with kitchen issues sorted. The ladies and
disabled toilets, although functional, are still in need of upgrading and funds
are available. We have been let down by builders – not turning up, not
providing a quote. The working group are considering dividing the project
into smaller tasks i.e. plumbing, carpentry, decorating – in order to attract
tradesmen. A paid cleaner is still used.
The Upton Photographic Competition continues and the ‘winter’ winners will
soon replace the existing pictures in the foyer.
Car parking issues have been raised by hall users and local residents.
Work on sorting out the guttering is progressing and small maintenance
projects are being sorted by committee members.
Rob Traynor
Chair, UVHAT

Upton Village Hall Amenities Trust (UVHAT)

Following last month’s Annual Parish Meeting (APM) and the subsequent
write up in Upton News, the trustees of UVHAT, the trust which manages
Upton Village Hall, hope villagers find the following information helpful.
We were dismayed to learn for the first time by reading in the Upton News
that the meeting felt strongly that “UVHAT was not transparent in its
operation…concern was expressed that there was a lack of involvement with
the village and it was failing in its role as the centre of the community and
was merely a “room for hire”. We hope the Upton Parish Council members,
who are also trustees, were able to help reassure those villagers who
attended the APM that this is not the case.
First, we would like to thank all the villagers whom regularly hire the hall
for their own private events, attend the wide range of clubs and classes
which are on at the hall and also support and attend the village events held
at the hall. We are also grateful for the many kind messages we get
regarding the running of the hall and the facilities.
The village hall website www.uptonvillagehall.co.uk contains all the
information on what’s on at the hall each week, its availability, how to hire
and about the running of the hall. For those new to the village there is a
discount on hire of the hall if you live in the village – currently just £8 an
hour for use of the whole hall.
Who manages the village hall?
The trustees, all of whom are residents of Upton, are listed on the website:
Mr A Dyson (Treasurer)
Mrs L Evans
Mrs L Mason
Mrs J Reid (Secretary)
Mr B Rippon
Mr R Traynor (Chair)
Mrs J M West
Mr B Shaw (Appointed Member representing Upton Parish Council)
Mr B Heneghan (Appointed Member representing Upton Parish Council)
The address of the Trust is Autumn Leaves, High Street, Upton, OX11 9JE.
Registered as a Charity, 8 November 1990, Charity No. 1000813 our annual
financial history [total income & expenditure only] and charity information is
publicly available at
https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-search/-/
charity-details/1000813
How to contact us
If you would like to contact the trustees about anything regarding the village
hall please email trustees@uptonvillagehall.co.uk or if it in regards to a
booking or use of the hall please email
bookings@uptonvillagehall.co.uk.
These details are also on the website and please note we are a separate
entity from Upton Parish Council (UPC), although members of UPC are
represented as trustees – so if you have any concerns or ideas about the
hall please contact us directly.
Purpose of the trust
Our aim and responsibility, which is set out in the constitution of the trust
is to provide a facility and ensure it is maintained for use by the village and
the local community. The current wording is:
The Property and the trust fund and its income shall be applied for the
purposes of a village hall for the purpose of the inhabitants of the Parish
of Upton without distinction of sex, sexual orientation, age, disability,
nationality, race or political, religious or other opinion including the use
of the Property for meetings, lectures and classes or forms of recreation
and leisure time occupation in the interests of social welfare and with the
object of improving the conditions of life for the said inhabitants.
UVHAT has always been keen to support whole village activities, we
provide free hall use for village events such as the Fete, Uptonogood, the
recent Coronation party and numerous residents participate in some of the
regular bookings such as the gymnastics, karate, yoga, dog training, Wine
Club, Brownies etc while others make use of the venue for private
functions. (We are the cheapest village hall in the surrounding area and we
think one of the best!).
When we are in fundraising mode we also put on different kind of events
for the village. Currently we have saved enough funds for an upgrade to
our toilet facilities – like so many we have been struggling to find
contractors who have availability to take on this project, although with
new leads we are hopeful this will be done soon. If you have any ideas on
further improvements to the facilities please get in touch with us.
Would you like to be a trustee?
We are currently on the lookout for new trustees to join us from the
village. If you are interested in becoming a trustee or learning more about
it please contact trustees@uptonvillagehall.co.uk
Next UHVAT Management Meeting
The next management meeting of the trust is in on Wednesday, 14 June at
7.45pm. If you would like anything raised at this meeting or would like to
attend please email trustees@uptonvillagehall.co.uk
Jacqui Reid
N.B.
A Chairman and Deputy should have been elected at the AGM in February
but it was cancelled at the last minute and the election is carried over to
the June meeting.
Anyone who is available and wants to play a part in furthering the success
of such a valuable village asset is encouraged to attend. – Editor

Upton Village Hall News

Upton Village Hall has started 2023 well in terms of bookings with all regular
classes such as Karate, Dog Training, Gymnastics and Yoga returning. Tea
Birds Women’s Institute group also meets at the hall every
month. Children’s party events and other celebration bookings continue to
rise.
In terms of maintenance we still hope to undertake refurbishment of the
disabled and ladies toilets providing we can find a contractor to do so which
is currently proving problematic after much searching. Unfortunately we
suffer occasional problems with the mains drainage – the result of the drains
running at too shallow an angle. Unless a permanent solution can be found
we have committed to have the drains cleared on a regular basis. We will
shortly be performing repairs to the guttering and downpipes together with a
new soakaway.
The internal facilities remain in good shape with the kitchen floor recently
being replaced, a new microwave and the cooker fixed.
If you have any ideas or thoughts on facilities or features the hall could
benefit from for the use of villagers please contact:
info@uptonvillagehall.co.uk or if you are interested in booking the hall
please follow the guidance on www.uptonvillagehall.co.uk
Jacqui Reid (on behalf of UVHAT)

Village Hall Back Up and Running

Now that the majority of Government COVID-19 rules have been lifted,
Upton Village Hall is fully back up and running and taking all usual party and
event bookings. This includes the return of all the usual classes and group
meetings such as Karate, Yoga, Gymnastics, Brownies, Dog Training, Tea
Birds, Short Mat Bowls and Wine Club.
The Upton Village Hall Amenities Trust will be holding its AGM at the end of
March and details will shortly be available on the hall’s website
www.uptonvillagehall.co.uk

More Improvements Planned for the Village Hall

At a meeting of the Upton Village Hall Amenities Trust (UVHAT) on Tuesday, February 26th 2019, the trustees unanimously agreed to proceed with the refurbishment and upgrading of the main village hall. This has been on our agenda for quite sometime, and after consultation with the various user groups we now have a modest plan of upgrades and refurbishments.

The ceiling lighting will be replaced with energy efficient LED lighting as will the wall lights.  More  electrical sockets will be added at strategic places round the room. All the fire safety/exit lights will be upgraded and also the wall heaters replaced with more modern, energy efficient ones.  Acoustic panels will be placed on the ceiling to help reduce reverberation time making it less harsh when there are a lot of people in the hall. The walls will be covered with thermal insulation plasterboard and plastered and wainscoting will be added on the lower half of the walls to protect the wall from scuffs and smudge, this will also help to insulate the hall even more. The hall will then be painted. The floor will be repaired where necessary and various boards replaced. It will then be stripped and the various different wood areas will be re- matched together, sanded and sealed. Finally all the old pelmets and curtains will be removed and replaced by wood painted blinds on all windows. We believe  that these improvements will make the main a hall a more pleasant lighter and brighter environment to be in. Work will hopefully start in early July and maybe stretch a little into August. It still may be possible to use the hall while some of the works are going on but there will be two periods when it will have to be closed completely. The little meeting room may be still available in extremis. We hope to have the hall ready again for the church/village fete at the beginning of September.

We would also like to take this opportunity to thank Lesley Shaw, who is leaving UVHAT, for all her hard work as a trustee over many years, and most recently looking after our Upton 50 Club which raises vital funds to keep our hall maintained.  Jacqui Reid will now be looking after the Upton 50 Club.

Upton Village Hall Trustees

Village Hall AGM

The AGM of the Upton Village Hall Amenities Trust (UVHAT) took place in the Village Hall Meeting Room at 7.30pm on Tuesday the 20th November. There were apologies from three of the trustees who were unable to attend. The minutes of the 2017 AGM were approved. The Chairman Brian Rippon, reported that the hall was working well, fulfilling its purpose and providing a valuable and effective service to the village. The kitchen refurbishment is continuing to operate very well, and with the addition of various types of tables, a stage, a PA system, and a projector and screen we have managed to continue offering an excellent service to the village and its various users. John Haworth, the treasurer, presented the financial statement. The hall is in good financial strength and has good solid reserves. Rental was 3% up (broadly the same as the previous year) regular hirers down 5%, but there was a substantial increase in party and other hires. The 50’s Club generated £915 for hall funds and a huge thank you to Lesley Shaw for organising it, modernising it, and providing a valuable and continuing source of income. This year’s fete also helped further with more funds raised. The chairman concluded, that the hall was in good shape, and he felt that it was time to step down as chairman as he no longer had the time to spend which he felt was going to be necessary in the forthcoming year. He has however agreed to remain as a trustee and continue to handle hall bookings. John Haworth then thanked Brian Rippon for his excellent contribution on behalf of the trustees. Graham de Wilde agreed to take over as Chairman, Rob Traynor as vice chairman. John Haworth agreed to remain as Treasurer and Kieron Humphrey agreed to continue as Secretary, all the other trustees also agreed to serve again. There being no further business the meeting was closed at 8.00pm. The next AGM will be on the 14th May 2019 at 7.30pm.

Graham de Wilde

The Incredible Doctor Guttmann

The Incredible Doctor Guttmann will be performed in the Village Hall on Monday 19 November at 7.30 p.m.

The amazing story is based on how ordinary men and women became the vanguard of the modern paralympics as Guttmann built a sports team to take on the world.

Tickets £10 (£8 concessions) from Jessie West 01235 851206

Profits to village hall improvements.