Orlingbury Village Hall fears energy costs could force closure

A village hall in Northamptonshire fears it may not survive the winter as energy prices continue to rise.

Orlingbury Village Hall says it has seen its energy bills go up tenfold over the past three years, to as much as £1,200 each month.

With the hall not making enough money to match the bills, it says it could close in the next few months.

Rural poverty charity Acre says around 10% of halls in England could shut as fuel costs continue to soar.

A drama group, a community choir and a bowls club are just a few of the activities that are held at the hall each week.

Despite donations from villagers to help keep the building running, treasurer Tony Hillett says it might have to close in "maybe four months or so".

"Once the money's gone, it's gone," he said. "We are unsustainable at the moment."

Acre has been calling for the government to provide support to community buildings to help them stay open.

In its recent survey of around 900 village halls, it found that on average they spent 27% of their annual unrestricted income on energy in the past year.

Frances Harris, the charity's community facilities adviser, said: "Many of the volunteer management committees we support to run these buildings are telling us they have seen their utility bills dramatically increase over the past few months, and some - like Orlingbury - could possibly even close if support cannot be found.

"This would be a massive blow to rural communities as quite often they are the only place where people can socialise and keep warm."

A government spokesperson said they remained "firmly on their side".

"We have put in place our Energy Bill Relief Scheme, which means most customers will pay less than half the wholesale prices anticipated this winter.

"In addition, village halls can benefit from the £3m village hall fund introduced in May this year to support modernisation and capital improvements, including energy efficiency measures."

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