Project Finances

The final project cost, including professional fees, construction costs, fixtures, fittings, furniture, landscaping and non-reclaimable VAT amounted to approximately £549,000. This was £39,000 (or 7.5%) more than the original project budget of £510,000. The increased costs were primarily due to the unforeseen need for extra groundworks and late changes to the roof design. The cost of the circular meeting room was also substantially higher than originally estimated. In addition, a substantial amount of electronic equipment was generously donated to the project by Norwich Home Cinema Ltd and the Trustees opted to spend a further £6,700 to install this and other complimentary equipment; this expenditure was unbudgeted (and not therefore included in the £549,000 total) but was subsequently fully paid for by a private donation.

On the positive side, unbudgeted grants amounting to almost £11,000 were secured in 2009 and the hall is very well equipped for functions and conference hire (which will generate valuable future revenues).

At the completion of the project there was a £30,000 funding shortfall. This has been partially covered by a £25,000 loan from ACRE (Action for Communities in Rural England) that had been agreed with them as a precaution before the project started. The loan is repayable over 5 years and the interest rate is variable at 1.4% over base rate. The remaining shortfall has to be met by additional fund raising, grants and donations.

The Trustees are confident, based on the level of community support for previous fund-raising efforts, that the debt is affordable but it does unfortunately mean that fund-raising must continue to repay the loan over the next 5 years.

The financial situation is therefore neither perfect nor a disaster. It is under control and the community at least has the benefit of the new building whilst paying off the debt. In the meantime, the Trustees will continue to apply for grants for improvements, but it is also very important that the use of the hall is maximized to generate additional funds.