Community hall celebrates 25 years as much-loved community space

Local residents gathered recently to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Westbury Leigh Community Hall, marking the milestone of the creation of a popular community space within the church.

The community came together on Saturday 20th September, for afternoon tea, live music and reminisce about the history of the hall.

Beryl Drake, who organised the event, showcased newspaper clippings from the White Horse News to highlight the hall’s 25-year journey. Beryl was present when the hall opened in 2000 and served as treasurer on the committee for nine years. She remains involved today, running the village bingo once a month.

“We’re all sitting here, rejoicing that the church was saved and that all the ideas, many of which are Peter’s, have been achieved,” said Susan Swann, whose husband, Peter, played a vital role in converting part of the building into a community space.

Following the threat of closure of Holy Saviour Church in Westbury Leigh, Peter, a retired architect, drew up plans to transform part of the church’s large, underused interior into Westbury Leigh Community Hall. Through donations and grants, the project raised approximately £182,000, and building work began in July 1999.

Terry Salisbury, who, alongside her husband, was a trustee for the project, said, “It was four years of really hard graft. Peter and I worked hard to make things come to fruition, and he did a wonderful job. I was jolly pleased when we had an opening ceremony with the bishop.”

The hall opened in September 2000 and has since hosted bingo, parties, folk dancing, yoga, bridge and many other community events. “The first event we put on was a coffee morning, which raised £20!” said Terry.

Westbury Leigh Community Hall is entirely run by volunteers and continues to host regular events such as coffee mornings, tabletop sales and bingo.

For more information or to book space at the hall, visit https://westbury-leigh.co.uk/.