Run by volunteers, used by everyone, and legally in exactly the same position as a business.
A village hall can hold two hundred people for a Christmas fair and be empty for the fortnight either side. It is often heated by something old, wired to a standard that made sense in 1978, and let to hirers who bring their own equipment, their own candles and occasionally their own fryer.
Committees change every few years and the paperwork rarely moves with them. The handover duty introduced in October 2023 matters more here than almost anywhere: an outgoing responsible person must pass fire safety information to the incoming one.
Yes. The Fire Safety Order attaches to whoever has control of the premises, not to whether anyone is paid. A hall committee is the responsible person for its hall.
You keep responsibility for the building, its escape routes and its equipment. The hirer takes on how their event is run. That split should be written into the hire agreement, and most of the ones we read do not mention fire at all.
Yes, and listed church buildings need a careful hand. Candles, heaters, electrical installations of some age, and a congregation that includes people who cannot move quickly.
Useful to share with the rest of the committee before we visit.
Walk the hall with this before the next booking.
Halls across the whole county, no travel charge.
Tell us the building and we will give you a price on the phone. Most assessments are booked within the week.