Parish Council Considers Methodist Church & Hall
As you will be aware from previous news, the Methodist Church and Hall are up for sale with a guide price of £420,000. This matter will be discussed by the Parish Council next Wednesday 27th February at 7:30 pm and they have issued the following Information Paper to inform this discussion. Members of the public are welcome to attend, the Parish Council look forward to sharing your views!
Information Paper
On The Sale Of West Bergholt Methodist Church And Hall
Introduction
This information paper is put forward by Brian Butcher, Chair of West Bergholt Parish Council’s Premises Committee and Andrew Savage, the Council’s Responsible Financial Officer. The purpose of this paper is to aid discussions at the Parish Council meeting on 27th February 2019 by Councillors and those members of public who share concerns over the buildings’ ownership and long-term use. Nothing contained in this paper can be treated as a formal view held by the Parish Council.
The Church and Hall
The church was built in the 1870’s and the hall in the 1950’s. The church walls are of solid brickwork and the roof tiled whilst the hall has cavity walls supporting a corrugated asbestos roof. Whilst the church closed in September 2018, the hall is still currently available for hire. Both buildings are typical of their time and are for freehold sale. The burial grounds are, however, available on a long lease.
External Advice
There are many possible options for some involvement by the Parish Council in the future use of this site. In all cases, corporate governance will require legal advice to be sought in respect of any sale and lease contracts. In addition, full building surveys will be needed for any buildings likely to be purchased.
Future uses of the church and hall
The current planning designation is ‘D1’ (non-residential institutions) which is essentially for the same uses as those at the Orpen Memorial Hall complex. Therefore, planning approval would have to be applied for and granted should residential use be sought by anyone. The success of any such application is unknown.
Possible impact on village facilities
It is possible that some developer may wish to acquire the whole site without involving the village or the Parish Council in any way. Should this be the case, or indeed should the buildings be unavailable during renovation work or for other reasons, the village facilities including the Orpen Memorial Hall complex (and, in particular, the John Lampon Hall at night and the Social Club hall during the day) will be able to accommodate the existing hirers of the hall, but perhaps not at their current times. Should the Methodist Church wish to continue to have a presence in West Bergholt, they would also be able to use the Orpen Memorial Hall facilities.
Implications in the medium term
As clubs expand and the problem of storage at the Orpen Memorial Hall complex becomes even more critical, additional buildings will be needed by the Parish. In addition, other ideas have been raised over the years, including through Neighbourhood Plan questionnaires and consultations. Such uses include a community café and meeting place, a clinic for district nurses, additional rooms for hire, a Parish Clerk’s office and an occasional farmers market to mention just a few.
This, therefore, indicates that the provision of additional accommodation by the Parish Council will become necessary and therefore the potential opportunities afforded by the sale should be investigated.
Some possible options and funding implications
There are many options depending on whether the Methodist’s Trustees can sell the church and hall together or as separate lots and whether the Parish Council has any opportunities of working in partnership with anyone else.
To put the funding implications in perspective, the guide price is £420,000 Freehold and, obviously, the Parish Council does not have such funds available. If they wished to take out “a mortgage” for the full amount the cost is estimated at £23,000 per annum for 25 years. This equates to the current sum the Parish Council spends on projects each year and would add an additional £17 to the precept of each Band D household (increasing it from around £69 to £86).
There are currently many unknown factors in addition to those mentioned above. In what state are the buildings and what are the associated remedial and improvement costs? What income could be derived from hirers? What level of grant funding may be available? Will payments received from the construction of the new properties envisaged by the Neighbourhood Plan be able to contribute? Will there be contributions from philanthropic residents and through crowdfunding?
Conclusions
The purchase of the church and hall should not be entered into lightly or without detailed consideration given to funding and the debt the Council would take on, but the opportunity to purchase such buildings as the church and hall are rare.
The purpose of this Paper is to provide the information on which to decide whether we, as the Parish Council, pursue enquiries and determine any practical options.