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Status
Received: on time
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Income
£44.4K
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Spending
£77.7K
Public benefits
Aghalee Village Hall (“the Foundation”) works to benefit the inhabitants of the village of Aghalee and its surrounding neighbourhoods within Lisburn and Craigavon Council areas. The Foundation provides a facility for the use of the inhabitants and assists a wide spectrum of people, from young children and young people to the elderly. The
estimated numbers of people currently directly benefiting from the facility is around 1700 directly, with 3500 indirectly benefiting. These figures are based on existing user group figures. User group numbers are not static and increase or decrease over time. In considering the benefits flowing from the Foundation’s management of Aghalee Village Hall and the promotion of charitable purposes under the Recreational Charities Act, the use of the village hall facility for classes and educational programmes acts to encourage the community to develop friendships and relationships. This in turn enables the creation of a friendly community atmosphere and provides for a better future for the community. This provides important benefits to the community through members of the user groups and event attendees by the encouragement of social and community cohesion and the development of good community relations. The Foundation’s leisure, educational and drama programmes provide an important focus point for the community. Through the classes provided by the Foundation, attendees gain new skills and benefit from improved self-esteem and personal development. The Foundation also acts as a valuable interface and network for many other community organisations within the area, further strengthening community relationships and resilience. These benefits are core to the Association’s community development mission through improving the conditions of life for the beneficiaries. In seeking to demonstrate these benefits, evaluations from participants and users of the facility are undertaken in order to provide tailored activities suitable to the needs of the beneficiaries. In examining the evaluation returns from the year 2009 to the present year, the Foundation has found a substantial increase in participation in community life. Furthermore, a substantial increase in those attending community education/capacity building classes has also been evidenced with a resultant improvement in the skills base, confidence and self-esteem of the community. In the context of the Foundation’s recreational purposes and the consideration of the possible harm that may arise from the Foundation’s purposes, it is acknowledged that access to the facility is not always provided on a free of charge basis. The Committee considers that the introduction of charges for the use of the facility is necessary in order to ensure the maintenance, upkeep and survival of the facility. However, consideration has been given to the level of charges payable by the beneficiaries, many of whom are children or elderly or from lower income families and/or community groups. In the context of the Foundation’s recreational and community activities, it is not perceived that any harm arises from these purposes. In considering the private benefits arising from the Foundation’s work, it is acknowledged that incidental private benefits are received by facilitators as a result of payments made to facilitators where required. This is considered necessary for the safe and effective running of the facility and its classes. The private benefits received by the Committee as a consequence of any necessary and transferrable governance or management training or expenses payments are considered incidental and necessary in order to ensure that benefit is provided to the inhabitants. The private benefits received by committee members as a consequence of the ability to access community facilities are incidental as residents living in the area and are no greater than the benefits obtained by any other resident.
... [more] [less]What your organisation does
We provide and maintain a premises. We enable and permit these premises to be used for the purposes of physical and mental recreation and social moral and intellectual development through the medium of reading and recreation rooms, library, lectures, classes, recreations and entertainments as may be found worthwhile for the local community. We also
provide courses, classes and activities similar to those described above in our own right. By these activities we encourage individual and social development, improved community relations and improved social welfare for the local community many of whom are isolated by their rural location.
... [more] [less]The charity’s classifications
- The advancement of citizenship or community development
Who the charity helps
- General public
How the charity works
- Community development
- Cultural
- Education/training
- Rural development
- Sport/recreation
- Welfare/benevolent
