kennandkennford.co.uk
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KENN PARISH HALL THE KENN CENTRE (THE NEW HALL PROJECT) |
Photo Gallery - Watch the progress of the new hall build
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KENN CENTRE IT’S HAPPENING! The Kenn Centre Update APRIL 2007 The Easter holiday weekend, Friday 6 April to Monday 9 April inclusive 9am-5pm will see the start of the Kenn Centre project. It is hoped that parishioners will turn up in their numbers to assist in the clearance of the Depot Site, for those who are unsure the site is located adjacent to Partridge Cycles immediately behind Beers Terrace. The site has recently been inspected by our newly appointed environmental advisor ( Kelvin Boot) who will be recording details of the environmental benefits that will be achieved by the project. Kelvin will be available to advise on the site clearance as regards the protection of flora and fauna and direct us to enable provision of a planned greener space for the future benefit of our Parish. It is our intention to provide at all times site managers who will be responsible for the safe workings of the site, to ensure that potential dangers are identified and removed with the use of risk assessment. As mentioned in last months news letter all helpers should dress appropriately for ground clearance work, that is outdoor apparel, stout shoes/boots, gardening gloves etc and should provide their own gardening tools. As previously stated it is important to ensure that young people under the age of 13 are not allowed access to the site due to health and safety reasons and we would therefore respectfully request the cooperation of all parents. We realise that the Easter holidays can be a busy period and in fact a number of residents may well be away on holiday but it is necessary to make a start to the project at this time of the year to enable compliance with our project timetable. A great deal of unseen effort has been made over the last seven years to get us to this stage, just a few hours of your time will make all the difference. I hope that the community is able to make its mark by assisting in the start of this worthwhile and exciting project. Remember--------The Kenn Centre--------- It’s happening!
MARCH 2007 Grant Funding Since the last update in January I am delighted to inform the Parish of the outcome of our recent grant funding applications. The Devon Renaissance Management Board has conditionally approved funding of £237,000 for the Kenn Centre, in addition Devon County Council have conditionally approved funding of £50,000 as contribution to the construction of an independent purpose built facility for the Pre School. Sale of the Old Hall Teignbridge Planning Services have approved the planning application for conversion of the Old Hall to residential units. It is hoped that the building will be placed on the market in the near future for sale by private tender, enabling compliance with the project timetable. Pre School Facility The building is intended to be located to the rear of Beers Terrace and following a meeting with planning services earlier this week will be the subject of a planning application in the very near future. The building is intended to replace the proposal for a similar facility incorporated within the design of the Kenn Centre. The previous design was 85 square metres and located to the rear of the main building with its own entrance, lobby / reception area. There was no provision made for disabled toilets other than sharing those of the Centre, the food preparation area would be shared and there was no provision for an office. A covered outdoor play area was catered for but at an additional cost and storage areas would be shared with the main facility. The budget estimate indicated a construction cost of £134,000. Advantages of an independent facility are:- The ability to expand if required Greater security for the children The provision of service will be continued during construction of the Kenn Centre. Will attract funding of £50,000 from Devon County Council A saving of £25,000 will be made on the construction cost The savings made will allow the Kenn Centre to be built to a higher environmental standard, ‘BREEAM’ “very good”. A superior facility will be provided for the Pre School Community Building Following the successful outcome of the application for funding to Devon Renaissance and the conditions imposed, it is apparent changes to the proposed main building will be required. Without the need to incorporate the Pre School facility and the requirement by the funder to embrace a higher environmental standard in the construction of the building, there will almost certainly be a necessity to amend our intended design. Over the past months we have been involved in lengthy discussions with Stacey Construction our preferred construction company and detailed consideration given to the options available. As can be seen by the developments of the last month the project is gaining pace and although in principal the funding required is in place there is a continued requirement to remain flexible in our approach. Be assured that we will endeavour to achieve a facility of which we can all be proud, making a statement of intention for the future well being of rural life. The facility will be of the highest quality of design incorporating excellent environmental standards at best value, enabling provision of high quality service for the benefit of the community and future generations. Site Clearance The Easter weekend will see the start of the Kenn Centre project. All parishioners are invited to bring their rakes spades picks etc. to assist in the clearance of the Depot site adjacent to Partridge Cycles. Most of the work involved will include the removal of overgrown brambles, unwanted shrubbery, general waste etc. You would be advised to wear gardening apparel including heavy boots/shoes, gardening gloves etc. The amount of time you are able to contribute is entirely up to you, we will operate daily from Friday 6th April to Monday 9th April 9am. to 5pm. Due to the need to employ heavy machinery during this initial period it is important to note that young people under the age of 13 will not be allowed on site. It is intended at a later date to organise supervised young peoples work parties at a time when the safety of the children can be guaranteed. As can be seen in the article supplied by Kenn School the school are offering to open for young peoples activity sessions to allow parents the opportunity to volunteer for this very worthy cause. More information will be provided nearer the time on local notice boards at the Post Office and the school. It’s time to start the project and introduce you all to the new home for the Kenn Centre. Remember - The Kenn Centre. Its happening For more detailed information and debate the Kenn Centre project will be the main feature at this year’s annual Parish meeting held in April. (Date to be published)October 2006 Following the devastating news from Defra regarding the application for funding of the proposed new centre, the Hall 2000 Committee have re-grouped, drawn breath and are now ready to recommence battle with potential funders for our exciting project. It has been acknowledged by Defra that the reasons behind their decision was purely those of economics, the fund had come to an end, they had been over subscribed and were unable to fund a project of our size. Considering we had been in constant dialogue with Defra for a period of two years and they were anticipating our bid, the reasons for not funding the project seem to be somewhat bizarre. Nevertheless, we have to draw a line under the episode and continue in our quest to obtain funding for our much needed facility. Since receiving the bad news officially at the end of July we have held numerous meetings with concerned parties. Teignbridge District Council (TDC) Community Council of Devon (CCD), Architects, Quantity Surveyors and legal advisors with a view to formulating a new strategy and timetable to progress the project. Following the meetings we have been extremely pleased to receive renewed support from our partners, CCD and the wholehearted support of TDC who are progressing the land transfer and also assisting us in identifying potential funders. At this time it would seem that the most logical way forward would be to look at the scheme as a modular project and complete the build over four phases. With this in mind we approached our architect with a view of phasing the project and at the same time detailing the cost of completion at 2007 prices. Results will be available shortly which will precipitate meetings between ourselves, CCD, architects etc. with a view to outlining our new strategy. FUNDING. Large amounts of funding (up to £250,000) are available from the Community Building Programme of the Big Lottery Fund. Funding is achieved over two phases, phase one identifies eligibility to the scheme and phase two assesses the need and strength of the application. We can only apply to phase one of the programme when we are confident we have identified the area required to attract the funding which hopefully we will establish within the next few weeks. It is vital our strategy is correct as you are only allowed to apply once to the fund if you should fail to be referred to phase two we cannot re-apply Great news in September – we have received confirmation from the Landfill Tax Credit Fund that we have been awarded a grant of £10,000 which has been supported by our Parish Council and will enable us to clear the site ready for the project to begin. Many thanks to the efforts of Sarah Havill and Jane Chislett. Teignbridge District Council have also offered to conduct a bat survey of the old buildings on the depot site to comply with our planning permission and will remove the buildings on completion. This will save us a further £5,000. I would hope that by the end of October we will be in a position to present our planning application for housing on the old parish hall site. We should also be in a position to advertise our next public meeting at which you can have your say – probably in November. Keep the belief The Kenn Centre – It’s Happening. Hard Work & Heartache June 2006 Following a great deal of hard work and expense, the application for funding to Defra was submitted by the Parish Hall Committee on May 2nd 2006. As you are all aware, Kenn Parish Hall has been working with the Community Council of Devon (CCD) for three years on a joint project - The Kenn Centre, which will provide modern community centre facilities for the Parish and surrounding area as well as office accommodation for CCD. During the first year of the partnership we met with many funders – public and private, this resulted in identifying the Rural Enterprise Scheme (RES) of Defra’s England Rural Development Programme (EDRP). We have liaised with key officers at the Exeter offices of Defra since October 2004, establishing our eligibility and receiving very positive feedback about the innovative nature of our joint venture. In early 2005 we conducted a successful feasibility study with some financial help from Leader +. We then jointly commissioned professionals – at very significant expense to both parties – to enable us to seek full planning permission to draw up joint venture and lease agreements. Then, with assistance from CCD, we developed a Business Plan which was handed to RES, as previously mentioned, in time for the June funding meeting. We understood the bid was perceived to be a strong contender. The site has been acquired and full planning permission achieved. With the main project and associated work, we have assembled a fantastic funding package that includes local fundraising, Parish Council precept, Charity Bank, Teignbridge District Council together with large inputs from both partners (see project costs at the end of this article). The widespread perception of our joint scheme is seen as highly innovative and is typified by the Charity Commission who wish to use our joint venture as a model case study for its forthcoming publication on collaboration and mergers. Our case officer at Defra, who has guided and advised both ourselves and CCD throughout, led us to believe that we had a very strong chance of success. We accept that there was no certainty and that we were competing with other bidders. More recently we believed and hoped that the South West region stood to gain from an EDRP underspend in other parts of the country. Now, all of a sudden, following a telephone conversation on Monday 15th May, the situation appears to be that, not only is the reverse the case, but there are no funds whatever remaining for RES projects, including those already submitted. Neither our case officer nor others in his department seem prepared to explain this ‘about turn’. We await official written confirmation detailing the outcome of our bid which we anticipate within the next few days. Following receipt of this notification, the committee will be able to identify the correct action required to progress the project. You may be assured that this temporary setback will not prevent us from achieving our aim of providing new community facilities for the Parish. What a difference a month can make! APRIL 2006 The project to provide the new community facility for the parish in partnership with the Community Council of Devon (CCD) is gaining momentum and has a feeling of inevitability. 20th FEBRUARY - A presentation was made to the Executive of Teignbridge District Council detailing the unique and innovative project that Kenn Parish Hall Committee and CCD had undertaken, and the benefits the scheme would have to all concerned. With this is mind, it was requested that Teignbridge District Council should donate the depot site to the Parish free of charge. After lengthy debate it was determined that the council would transfer the land in question to the parish at no cost. Reasons given for the unusual decision were the uniqueness of the project, the involvement of two charitable organisations and the tremendous financial support shown by the community, in particular, the Parish Council by way of the Parish precept. 6th MARCH - At the Teignbridge District Council Development Control
Committee meeting, detailed plans were submitted for: 21 votes FOR 0 AGAINST. 27th MARCH - A public meeting was held in the Parish Hall to update parishioners on progress made with the Kenn Centre. It was rewarding for all concerned to see the meeting so well attended. It was evident from the reaction of parishioners that they were impressed by the level of commitment , professionalism and depth of knowledge shown by the development committee. Many thanks to all concerned for making the meeting so informative: Jane Chislett Sarah Havill Mike Smith Steve Dickinson Howard Milton Jay Talbot Sue Holwell J Jackie Sands Maggie Westcott Peter Holwell Dale Simpson
A Step Nearer for Kenn Parish Community Centre - January 2006 The construction in Kennford of a new Kenn Parish Community
Centre, pre-school unit and offices for the This exciting and unique project has been made possible by the innovative
partnership forged between the The Community Council of Devon is an independent charitable company, and is part of a national network of Rural Community Councils helping communities to help themselves. The Community Council of Devon has over recent times been looking to relocate from their current restrictive facility at County Hall. It is felt that it would be more appropriate to move to a purpose built facility in a rural location with easy access to the Devon road network providing excellent communication with the countywide rural communities they support. The community centre and pre-school facility will enable Kenn Parish to provide much needed modern facilities for their many and varied organisations. Their present needs are not fully catered for in the Parish Hall which was originally built as a Reading Room in the 19th century and subsequently added to in 1920 and again in 1940. Consequently this has left an out of date facility of very poor design on differing levels making access and requirements of the disability discrimination act impossible to meet economically. Following extensive consultations with parishioners, user groups and the employees of the Community Council of Devon, the project management group have been able to provide relevant detailed information to their award winning architects Van der Steen Architects Ltd, Chagford to submit the planning application following completion of a feasibility study. The new facility will be situated at the old depot site at Kennford, a lightly contaminated brown field site within the village boundary. This land is currently owned by Teignbridge District Council and they have agreed to the use of the site for Community purposes and are extremely supportive of the project. Following a positive outcome to the planning application it is anticipated that funding application to Defra will take place by March of this year. At the present time the project management group are optimistic of a successful outcome and believe construction of the Centre will begin later this year.
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