Committee launches ambitious drive to raise £100,000 to re-roof Berneray Community Hall

Abigail Taylor

Berneray Community Association is taking no chances, factoring in the price of materials, labour and potential unforeseen costs, in setting the massive target of £100,000 to replace the roof of Berneray Community Hall.

Built more than three decades ago, the hall is considered the centre of the small island community, but now the roof has come to the end of its life it is time to carry out essential repair work to preserve the centre for another generation.

“We need to replace the whole roof and the windows on the roof, as well as the lead throughout the structure. It’s not until you remove the old roof, that you can see the real damage underneath. We have set our target at £100,000 to hopefully cover all the expected damage and replace everything that is needed at once,” explained association chairman, Nigel Buckley.

Material costs have soared as a result of the pandemic, with manufacturing severely disrupted while much of the world entered lockdown because of COVID-19.

Several of the sheets that make up the roof of Berneray Community Hall are cracked, causing leaks within the structure, although the committee members realise the extent of damage caused to the fabric of the building is not known, with water ingress perhaps taking place some distance from breakages on the exterior.

“It was supposed to last 15 years but our roof has been on for about 35,” added committee member Iain MacKillop.

“If we reach £65,000 we can go back to the builders to ask for a firm quote and see if we can begin the work for that amount. We hope to have reached that milestone on 1st May 2022. It is just about getting over the threshold and that is what is pushing us on.”

Water pours through the roof during heavy rainfall. Dehumidifiers and heaters run 24 hours a day in order to protect the floorboards, which comes at a heavy cost, and committee members are of the view the roof “will not last the year”.

£31,000 has been raised so far in the effort to replace the roof. Berneray Community Association has committed savings and an online crowdfunder is raising a significant amount, making for an encouraging start to the campaign, with many fundraising events planned for the coming months.

“We wrote to quite a few celebrities because over the past few years we have had a lot of teams here filming and making programmes on our islands,” explained committee member Joanne Vincent.

“We also approached Prince Charles as he has a strong connection to Berneray.

“We contacted the Grand Tour, This Morning, Ben Fogle and Darcey Bussell. Some replied explaining that they had their own chosen charities to contribute to so unfortunately that plan did not work out as we had hoped.”

Berneray Community Hall has been a hub for the island for close to 40 years and in that time it has hosted weddings, film screenings and funerals. Berneray Week is centred around the hall and an array of different activities, including quiz nights, treasure hunts, concerts and dances. Locals and visitors take part and those with connections to the island ensure their return visits coincide with Berneray Week, which can, on a good year, raise up to £8000.

Even outside the tourist season, the hall is somewhere to gather together during the winter months, in particular for events and activities in the run up to Christmas.

“Everyone in our community benefits from this hall. It is the heart and hub of our island. It brings together the people that live here and visitors, new and old,” reflected Joanne.

“We need our hall back,” added Iain.

“We need to have events and allow people to enjoy themselves. Everyone always has a great time and we need that to return!”