In praise of Bibury’s Village Hall

During this time of social isolation we appreciate more what we share in as a community. This is a celebration of the beauty and flexibility of Bibury’s Victorian Village Hall.

The village hall is one of those vital buildings that makes a village a community rather than just a collection of houses. How we miss it and all it brings us during this time of lockdown!

Our village hall is very well run and in normal times hosts a wide range of events from rug sales to birthday parties, from village pow-wows to martial arts. It has supplied refreshing teas and delicious cakes during Open Gardens Days and been the venue for regular cinema nights.

One week a couple of Decembers ago it hosted the 100th birthday party of a local gentlemen on the Tuesday and the 5th birthday party of a local boy on the Saturday, so it really is used across the community.

It’s a handsome, well proportioned structure that’s stone-built in the local vernacular style. Despite its spaciousness the interior has a homely, cottage-like feel with attractive original features.

The hall was originally built as a reading room with a cottage either side in 1878 and was funded by Earl Sherborne. Apparently reading rooms were funded by philanthropists at that time to encourage agricultural labourers to stay out of the pub. I suspect the sensible labourer would have gone to both the pub and the reading room, especially as the latter has very big, stone fireplaces and must have been warm and well lit. It was probably a welcome refuge from home which was probably a one up, one down smokey cottage with several noisy children within. Maybe they went to the pub first and then for a good read in the reading room; I could think of worse ways to spend a few hours on a winter's evening even today.

If you’d like to hire it (obviously once we’re through the current unpleasantness) you can do so here. As well as being beautiful and flexible it’s good value!