01. Community Centre and Cafe Minutes 4.8.26

The Council Office, Diamond Jubilee Lodge, Wood View Road, Hellesdon, Norwich, NR6 5QB
Tel: 01603 301751 www.hellesdon-pc.gov.uk email: contact@hellesdon-pc.gov.uk

Minutes of the Meeting of The Community Centre and Café Committee,
held on Tuesday 4 August 2026, 7pm at The Council Chamber, Diamond
Jubilee Lodge, Wood View Road, Hellesdon, Norwich Norfolk NR6 5QB
Present

Cllr Forder (Chair)
Cllr Barker
Cllr Diffey
Cllr Gurney
Cllr Knowles
Cllr Mel Maidstone

In attendance
Jonathan Hall (Clerk) Rebecca Larke ( Deputy Clerk) Kevin Sage (Facilities Manager) Chris Fisher (Deputy
Facilities Manager)

Cllr Britcher was present as a member of the public

1. Apologies for absence
Apologies were received and accepted from Cllr Douglass

2. Declarations of Interest and Dispensations
No declarations were made or dispensations requested.

3. Approval of the Minutes
Draft minutes were circulated from the meeting on 16 December 2026. These were APPROVED
and signed as a true and accurate record of the meeting.

4. Public Participation
There were no members of the public in attendance.

5. To discuss and recommend to Full Council the Committee’s Terms of Reference.
The terms of reference had been circulated prior to the meeting and the Committee RESOLVED to
approve the terms of reference with one amendment to the membership to allow all members to be
substitutes irrespective of their political party status.

6. To consider booking process of rooms, how far in advance for these can take place,
conditions of holding provisional bookings and sliding scale of fees for cancellations.

The Committee RESOLVED to amend the hiring arrangements so that:

           •   Bookings may not be made more than one year in advance, calculated on a rolling 365-day
               basis.
           •   Any provisional booking not confirmed within 14 days will be removed from the booking
               system, allowing the slot to be offered to other hirers.

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 • All Friday evening slots from 5.00pm onwards and Saturday slots from 12 noon onwards
during December will initially be ringfenced by the Parish Council. Priority for these slots will
be given to regular hirers, defined as hirers who book at least once per month.
• The same approach will apply to Halloween dates as to Friday and Saturday bookings in
December.
• The existing sliding scale of cancellation refunds will remain unchanged. The Clerk will have
discretion in relation to regular hirers who cancel with less than 24 hours’ notice, particularly
where cancellation is due to sudden changes in weather conditions.

The Committee also asked to for a list of all bookings for dates over one year to circulated to
committee members. A discussion took place suggesting that a hirers group could be set up
similar to that of the allotment holders. The group would represent a cross section of the regular
hirers of the Centre to raise issues and ideas. The Clerk agreed that this was a positive move
and as an operational responsibility, he would have further discussions with the Facilities
Manager and Deputy Clerk and return to the committee members with a way forward.

7. To consider hiring agreement and to make any necessary amendments.
The committee reviewed the existing hiring agreement circulated prior to the meeting and
RESOLVED to:

• Remove permissions for Bouncy Castles.
Any existing booking where permission has been gained will be honored. Existing bookings
must produce in advance of the booking date an insurance certificate to ensure the Parish
Council will not be liable for any incidents relating to the bouncy castle.
• Reword clause 11 regarding assistance dogs to make more user friendly.
• Continue with damage deposit / over run deposits of £200 per booking.
• All ad hoc bookings will be required to pay all costs (including damage deposits if applicable)
at the time of booking.
• Remove paragraph two of clause 19 Noise.
• Amend paragraph three of clause 19 Noise to read: All windows and doors are to be closed
within the Majorie Lewis Hall except for access. The Hall has air conditioning so extra
ventilation is not required. All windows and doors are to be closed in all other rooms except
for access and egress. This does not permit hirers or attendees to congregate outside or use
the gardens unless expressly authorised.
• Remove the last paragraph of clause 24 special notes. Clause 10 covers requirements for
serving alcohol to hirers.

8. To consider consequences of any closure of the Centre (or part of) when carrying out
maintenance and minor works.
The Committee were advised of the clauses in relation to cancellation of bookings within the hire
agreement. It was RESOLVED that these clauses will remain unchanged.

9. To consider use of TV screen in foyer to be used for marketing purposes.
The Committee discussed the use of the TV screen that had been removed from the Parish Council
office reception. It was RESOLVED that the screen should be used for community information
purposes, including:
• displaying welcome information;
• promoting Parish Council activities;
• showing the programme of events and room allocations, so that users know where their
event is taking place;
• displaying public information from organisations such as the NHS, Police and other relevant
public bodies;
• displaying menus from the café; and
• not displaying any commercial advertising.

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 10. To consider replacement of door stop guard rails.
The committee were advised that this work had already been scheduled. The Clerk advised that he
was ascertaining whether the rails were required to be white in colour for Health & Safety reasons.
The Committee RESOLVED to :
• Replace the rails
• If statute permits the rails will be stainless steel (powder coated if possible)

11. To consider policy on the use of the foyer area for staging events.
The committee discussed the use of Foyer and it appears many users had assumed use of this area
as part of their hire for the Majorie Lewis Hall. The Committee RESOLVED to agree that the foyer
would continue not to be allowed for use and that hirers should be reminded of their obligations
within the hire agreement.

12. To receive report on previous resolution to donate the baby grand piano to a community
project.
The committee received an update that despite offering the piano to various groups and schools it
had remained in the Community Centre. The piano was purchased with at least 50% funding from a
local resident in memory of himself and his late wife. The piano was used by the local choir and was
considered an asset to the Centre which needed to be promoted more for community use. It was
RESOLVED to keep the piano in the Community Centre and to remove the boards protecting it and
replace them with stands and ropes to encourage it to be played more often.

13. To receive report on Quality Control Checks and Environmental Health rating.
The Facilities Manager gave a brief update on the position which had improved. It was agreed to
place the item on the agenda for the following meeting.

14. To consider the use of volunteers during café opening hours.
The Committee had discussed the use of volunteers at a previous meeting in 2025. Some
individuals had come forward and had been contacted by the Council but this had not amounted to
anything. The committee RESOLVED to :

         •   reaffirm its commitment to volunteering in the Community Café
         •   through various platforms advertise for volunteers to step forward.
         •   meet all the necessary training and certification costs.
         •   provide PPE and Uniform.

Meeting ended 9.17pm

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Community Centre & Café Committee Minutes 4 August 2026
Approved…………………………………………
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Community Centre & Café Committee Minutes 4 August 2026