The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations is the membership organisation for Scotland's charities, voluntary organisations and social enterprises. Charity registered in Scotland SC003558. Registered office Mansfield Traquair Centre, 15 Mansfield Place, Edinburgh EH3 6BB.
Building fabric
One of the challenges of running a village or community hall is looking after the building itself. You might be looking after an old building that needs repairs, a new building that has issues or even a heritage building that means there are restrictions on what you can do.
This section covers the importance of planned preventative maintenance & servicing, emergency repairs and managing a capital construction (meaning construction, renovation or refurbishment project).
It is important to be aware of who has responsibility for any works, who must bear the costs and any liability for undertaking these works. This is often dependent on the ownership/leasehold structure for your community space and the terms and conditions specific to your own situation.
Maintenance & servicing
Making sure your building is well maintained and having a plan for carrying out routine maintenance and servicing can help:
- Increase the lifetime of your building
- reduce running costs
- mitigate risks from falls and accidents
- contribute to business continuity, meaning there is less chance you will have to close unexpectedly for emergency repairs
- avoid high costs in the long run by fixing any issues sooner
- make it less likely that insurance premiums will rise
- protect the building from losing value.
You should plan in regular inspections of the building, inside and out, and if possible keep some budget aside so that you can address any maintenance needs.
The DTAS Community Ownership Support Service has produced a useful checklist for asset maintenance, covering building fabric and installations for servicing & testing and planned preventative maintenance.
The Weston Property Manual from the Ethical Property Foundation has a useful and relevant section with guidance on Building Repair & Maintenance Plans.
Capital projects
Capital projects are any construction, renovation & refurbishment works that you may undertake to your community space and the purchase & installation or retrofitting (adding new fittings of features to older systems) of fittings, fixtures, and equipment.
When undertaking a capital project, whatever its size and focus, it is important to understand:
- the stages of briefing, designing, construction and operation and how they interact
- the roles and purpose of various professional advisors and contractors that you may engage and work with during the process
- your role and responsibilities as Client and that of all of the professional team involved with the capital project.
The RIBA Plan of Work organises the process of briefing, designing, constructing and operating building projects into eight stages and explains the stage outcomes, core tasks and information exchanges required at each stage.
Your Buildings Your Future is a guide to commissioning sustainable architecture for your community organisation, taking you through the various stages involved in a capital new-build project and providing clear representation and explanation of the many terms particular to construction projects.
Making Buildings Work for your Community is an informative guide to what to think about when looking at refurbishing a community space. It explores the impact of design decisions on long-term sustainability and helps groups embarking on a project, making recommendations of things to consider before commencing.
Another useful guide on Managing Building Works has been produced by the Church of England, taking you through everything you need to know when your construction project is on site.
Heritage and church buildings
Heritage or historic buildings are those that have been at the centre of our communities for generations. They can be significant because they are of historical, architectural, cultural, aesthetic or ecological value. Sometimes, there might be specific measures in place to preserve them (like them being listed). If your village or community hall is a heritage building, there will be certain considerations and challenges for you – often it’s the balance between maintaining the building and keeping it operating and financially and environmentally sustainable.
Because this is a complex area, and what you need to depends on the kind of building you have, we’ve pulled together some more in-depth resources that will help you.
The COSS publication Sustainable New Uses For Old Buildings, examines the opportunities and challenges involved with taking former civic and heritage buildings into community use. The guide features a range of case studies, which provide examples of successful, financially sustainable community-owned buildings. Contained within these examples is a wealth of experience, advice and ideas.
The Heritage Trust Network is a membership-based organisation, drawing together and supporting the work of local heritage groups, whether constituted as building preservation trusts, community trusts or social enterprises. It is a useful platform for community spaces located in heritage buildings, providing guidance and advice throughout the lifetime of a project from start up to post completion plus peer-to-peer support, knowledge sharing and skills development.
The Your Church, Your Community guidance document, developed by COSS, Heritage Trust Network and Historic Churches Scotland, helps to meet a growing need from communities for specific guidance around churches and accompanying land. Taking over and running a community space of any type is a big step for a community and brings with it substantial responsibility. This document has been designed to guide you through the process of taking on a church building for use as a community space.
Historic Environment Scotland has advice and information on listed buildings, maintenance and more.