The East Harptree Village Hall is a traditional venue with a range of uses, including choir, dance classes and community events. The main hall was built in 1889 as a theatre and its character remains evident today.
If you would like to book East Harptree Village Hall for an event, please head to www.ehbookings.co.uk or email ehbookings49@gmail.com
A Brief History of the East Harptree Village Hall and its surroundings
The premises that we call East Harptree Village Hall were sold to the village in 1949 to be held for the “recreational, social and educational benefit” of the people of East Harptree and surroundings and are operated under a registered charity number 304536.
The premises comprise all the range of buildings in the centre of the village. The main hall was built in 1889 as a theatre and we have tried to retain its character. The other attached buildings had a variety of uses recorded since then – mainly as small shops and storage.
In the last 50 years or so the premises were developed into the form you see them today. These main areas are now each managed separately, but used for purposes which enhance the community use of the site:
• There has been a hairdressing salon on the premises since 1977 moving to the current area (formerly a garage) in 1988.
• East Harptree Preschool was started on the site in the 1970s with its own room upstairs and extensive use of the hall, kitchen and resource area operating Monday-Friday. The Preschool moved downstairs in September 2022 to use the space previously occupied by the Village Club.
• The East Harptree Community Village Shop was opened in 2009 on the site of an old Forge, parts of which have been restored.
The Arts Hub: a new initiative set up by the committee of the Village Hall and Playing Field to increase access to the arts for parisioners and residents of the Chew Valley and beyond. The Arts Hub offers free studio space to artists and facilitates workshops and outreach programmes for people who might not usually have access to the arts. Read more at www.artshubharptree.com/
• In the early 1980s the Village Club was set up in the space beneath the Hall with a bar, skittles alley and other games. Sadly the Village Club closed in August 2020 and the space is now used by the preschool.
• The Hall itself (often referred to as The Theatre) is used by a variety of bodies during the week and for community based functions at the weekend. The charity is managed by the East Harptree Village Hall committee whose principal activities are to look after the fabric of the premises, liaise with tenants over their parts of the building and manage the use of the Hall on a day to day basis.
BOOKINGS AND ENQUIRIES FOR THE EAST HARPTREE VILLAGE HALL please go to www.ehbookings.co.uk or email ehbookings49@gmail.com
The East Harptree Village Hall today
The Hall itself is very traditional but we aim to make it comfortable for its wide range of uses.
Regular users are:
• Monday – Yoga
• Tuesday – Parish Council & WI and East Harptree Primary School (for PE)
• Wednesday – Guides
• Thursday – Circuit Training
• Saturday– Children’s Dance Classes
If you would like to book the hall and kitchen area for your event, head to our bookings website or email ehbookings49@gmail.com
BOOKINGS AND ENQUIRIES FOR THE EAST HARPTREE VILLAGE HALL please go to www.ehbookings.co.uk or email ehbookings49@gmail.com