Melbourne Assembly Rooms AGM September 28th

With the MARs AGM due on September 28th, we thought you would like to know what the board and our Development Manager have been up to in the last few months; we’d be happy to see you at the meeting, which starts at 7:30.

New lease

The main subject for discussion in our meetings recently has been the change in the lease of the Assembly Room buildings from South Derbyshire District Council (SDDC). Our manager Andy Heafield, Treasurer Blase Lambert and others, have been negotiating with SDDC to ensure the new long term lease works well for both parties. Phil Whitehead has also been looking carefully at the condition of the building. The most complicated aspect of the lease is the sub lease for the library, and discussions are ongoing.

We hope to bring you the news soon, that our Secretary Jane Caroll and Chair Margaret Gildea have signed a new 30 year lease. A new lease will open up many new opportunities for MARs, especially when it comes to funding for improvements to the building.

New Outside Area

On June 23rd, we held an opening event for the new outside area, aka The Terrace, The Outback Bar, or for some, the old school cycle sheds. There have already been parties, weddings and events where guests have taken advantage of the warm evenings outside. During the rest of the summer, we hope more MARs users will be able to enjoy this space.

The property report from Phil Whitehead revealed several issues. Updating facilities in the toilet was discussed, along with the need for an Asbestos survey and Fire risk assessment (carried out on June 12th) to be done by us on an annual basis. A picture rail has been installed in the Lounge so users can display the pictures they want to see.

Melbourne Cinema Evenings

We have installed new film projection equipment in the Hall, and the first Melbourne Cinema show was on August 19th. Rik Pipe has helped to recruit some volunteers to run the Melbourne Cinema evenings. The screen is also available for use by groups or commercial hirers who hire the Hall.

Jo Rost has supplied a new Equalities Policy that will be uploaded to the website as soon as it has been revised and fully reviewed.

As well as all his other work, our Development Manager has been putting on a fantastic schedule of events with a variety of evening events that bring revenue to the Assembly Rooms and many other businesses in Melbourne. Look out for some big names, including KiKi Dee and Fairport Convention.