PRIDE has been injected back into a parish hall which has become the hub of Stanton St Quintin village life.

A wide variety of clubs and groups are now starting to use the hall, from pilates and dog obedience classes, to Scouts and guitar club, and the parish hall committee is delighted it is a building villagers can be proud of once again.

The committee’s vision to revamp the dilapidated parish hall was kick-started in 2014 after vandals smashed the windows and sprayed graffiti on the walls.

Following an article published in the Gazette & Herald following the vandalism, the committee received a cash boost, and around £90,000 was spent refurbishing the hall.

The building structure was made safe, and it is now fully insulated with double glazing, has disabled access, new doors, ceilings and floors.

The stage, from 1938 is the only thing that has been left.

Cara Voelcker, chairman of the parish hall committee, said: “The hall was in disrepair, and being targeted by youngsters who saw it as their duty to speed up destruction of the building.

"The restoration work, which received a boost due to receiving financial support thanks to the Gazette & Herald, is now complete.

“It wasn’t really used at all before the restoration, the parish council didn’t even hold their meetings there, but now we have lots of groups using it.”

Nick Greene, chairman of Stanton St Quintin Parish Council and member of the parish hall committee, added: “It is absolutely beautiful and beyond our wildest dreams. It is a beautiful place and we are very happy to have it.

“Older members of the village will remember what it was like in the 1970s and 1980s when it was a nice hall. It unfortunately deteriorated to the extent it wasn’t a nice place, and maybe that’s why the vandals came.

“The vandalism upset us, but we reacted to it and maybe they did us a favour in encouraging us to get on and renovate the hall.

“We said enough is enough, it must be an attractive place for villagers and not just a target to be vandalised. We are really excited about the future of it.”