Bleasby Village Hall

"...amazed that the supplier had not got in
touch to alert us about the punitive rates which the hall had been automatically placed on."

• Location: Nottinghamshire
• Sector: Charity / Community Buildings
• Saving: £1.3k

Bleasby Village Hall in Nottinghamshire is typical of rural village halls thorough out the UK. The Victorian former school building is a focal point
for the community hosting all manner of local events. It is supported by a small army of loyal volunteers who spend countless hours working, not just to keep the hall running, but to seek funding for what seems like an endless list of repairs, refurbishments and improvements.

In the last few years grants have helped replace the roof, install a loop system, new loos and ramped access as well as repair and seal brickwork as part of flood defences. The busy list remains long and funding is being sought for insulation, new windows and refurbishing the kitchen. Despite the availability of grants for some pieces of work, as far as the day to day running of the hall is concerned, money is tight to the extent that the committee recently found, as a result of its energy costs, that it was running at a loss.

Faced with the harsh reality of increasing the rental charge for the hall by £2 an hour in order to meet the energy bills, the committee sought the advice of Make It Cheaper and in a phone call lasting no more than 10 minutes, was able to move to a new business electricity supplier and, in doing so, reduce its bills by a staggering £1,300 for the year - almost half of what it would have paid on its original contract.

A spokeswoman for the Village Hall said: I was amazed that the supplier had not got in touch to alert us about the punitive rates which the hall had been automatically placed on. Thanks to Make It Cheaper helping us cut the electricity bill in half."