Caerphilly Workmen’s Hall is looking to celebrate its 90th anniversary by raising £60,000 to repair its badly damaged roof.
The Grade II listed building, built with money from miners in 1925, suffered serious flood damage last winter due to a damaged roof.
Now volunteers at the hall are calling for all hands on deck to raise the money needed for its repair.
They are looking for builders, roofers and plasterers to lend a hand, but ideally need the vast sum to pay for the roof’s complete restoration, which is why they set up the Raise the Roof campaign.
Caerphilly Workmen’s Hall recently became a registered charity and, except for grants the volunteers apply for, does not receive any council funding.
Karina Warrington, vice chair of the hall’s committee and its events co-ordinator, said: “To completely restore the building would cost £250,000, but the roof is essential.
“We can’t even get a quote and we really are struggling to find people who are reliable. The hall has got great potential – it’s such a beautiful building.
“We’d like to set up a friends of the workmen’s hall group.
“You’d pay an annual amount and get first choice on tickets for popular shows and outside shows and two free tickets to shows in the hall.”
In a bid to raise funds for the roof, there will be a Rock and Restoration mini-festival on Sunday May 3, during the Bank Holiday weekend.
Ms Warrington said: “The last one we organised we got about £1,000 and we hope to raise more this time around.
“We really are part of the community and we seem to be getting a lot of the younger generation coming to events, and younger people are organising their own events.”
The hall was originally used as a theatre and cinema, along with a reading room for miners and other workers in the area.
It now holds events from gigs, to theatre productions, pantomimes and even has the odd medium pop in. Volunteers organise their own events and hire the hall out to groups and individuals.
It is staffed entirely by volunteers, from cleaners to bar staff, sound engineers and ticket sellers and they are always looking for volunteers to lend a hand.
Chairwoman Kathy Lye said: “All the volunteers are proud to be involved with the Workmen’s Hall – it’s an important part of the town’s heritage and we hope we can give it back to the community that built it.2
To get involved email info@caerphillyworkmenshall.org.