It has been a long haul with applying for grants, getting quotes, working round supply chain issues and rearranging the design to cope with the quirks of the building – but the hall committee are delighted to announce that their Centenary Project is now well under way.
There are now 24 solar panels on the roof at Pant Memorial Hall which started generating electricity this week. There are also smart new heaters and a tanked hot water system running from the solar panels.
Said Sean, Chair of Trustees at the Hall: “We can heat the water during the day for later use, and once the batteries arrive our evening events will also be solar powered. In the meantime, the long daylight hours of summer will allow us to reduce our energy use from the grid. That means lower bills and a smaller carbon footprint.”
The old storeroom at the pointy end of the Hall – nearest to the Tramway and telephone box – has been repurposed into a plant room for the water tank and inverter.
Work is due to start this week on refurbishing the old bar area and cleaning cupboard. Said Sean: “The bar area is perhaps the last 1980’s style part of the hall, so these works will make a huge difference both practically and aesthetically. Once the bar is completed we hope that more locals choose to host their events at Pant Memorial Hall.
“We have to thank our grant funders for making this possible: People’s Postcode Lottery and the National Lottery, and to everyone who play both games. This is a big project for a small hall like ours, managed entirely by hard-working volunteers and it will secure us well into our second century.”
You can see progress on the hall’s website and social media feeds, or visit the hall yourself by hiring it!!
Read more about the hall at https://pantmemorialhall.org.uk