Surprisingly, the summer is a good time to talk about the Reading Rooms. Thanks to Suzy Aldous’s brilliant gardening, the garden was opened for Kippen Garden Day and coffee and teas were served with assistance from the Cubs.
The committee and the Mitchell Trustees are very pleased to report that the Windmill Fund has agreed to provide a grant towards the refurbishment of the Rooms and the structure, for which we are most grateful, and which will benefit the community in general.
We are now engaged in fine tuning plans for an upgrade and relocation of the kitchen, cloakroom and toilet facilities on the ground floor. The plan includes creating a serving hatch into the main hall, direct from the relocated kitchen, as this will greatly help function organisers as well as significantly reducing the risk of accidents associated with moving both hot food and boiling water.
We also have plans for the rooms upstairs and are examining the possible creation of a library, which would see a return of one of the original purposes of the Reading Rooms.
John Walsh has been doing a great job for the committee by bringing his engineering experience to bear and working with contractors.
To ensure that this development results in the Reading Rooms providing the facilities needed by as many user groups as possible, we would like to hear the views of those users over the coming months. To that end, it is currently planned to hold an Open Morning when the plans will be available. In the meantime, our office bearers, Jeremy Gaywood, Betty McAllister or Ricky Muir- Simpson would be delighted to hear and discuss any views which residents of the village may have regarding the planned changes.
Finally, as always, our annual income is significantly dependent upon successful Jumble Sales and the support received from all the village and from the many helpers is very much appreciated. The next one will be held on October 27th, 2018.
Jeremy Gaywood
The Wee Vine 