Rock Centre Interview

Hello, so my name's Kathy and I'm sitting here with Ash at the Rock centre, uh, for the community resilience reporting. Just to find out really how you found the whole process with the with the funding from, you know, filling in the form, what you wanted for the centre, any difficulties you come across, and. How much it's improved the sense of that. OK, what would you like to tell me about what how you found the process? OK, so the, the application process itself, yeah, um, yes, it was, um, thankfully I've had experience in funding fundraising before, so, um, even though thislys Bristol City council was the first time I'd ever had applied to them, um, the actual forms are pretty much fairly straightforward and everything was

There wasn't a lot of jargon in it, so I think most people would probably agree that a lot of times when you apply for funders, you have duplication of questions and that for me personally is something that I don't enjoy because there's only so many ways you can say the same thing without becoming very repetitive and it's time consuming and then you start doubting yourself as such. So I found that the community resilience fund didn't have that, so that was very. Very much appreciated and uh helpful

Um, I think everything was pretty much straightforward. Uh, any questions or queries I had were pretty much answered straight away by either at the, cos there was an online, um, sort of Zoom call with everybody at the at the start when we first got them agreed to the money. Um, so a lot of the questions were already answered there

We were signposting in the right directions for any questions we had. And Laura and Robin, yeah, they were great. I mean, everything I've asked them, they've come back to me within a good time frame, you know, usually within 24 hours, most of the time, um, which is brilliant cos they must be really overworked looking after all these projects and all the paperwork they must have to do

I mean it's, yeah, that, so the actual process I found pretty much straightforward. Um, one of the things we, we had when we originalchie started looking at the application was it required a 5 year lease. Um, we didn't have a 5 year lease

So a part of our history, because we've been here since 1990 when our first lease was signed, the lease got up to 2015 and wasn't renewed. This wasn't due to us, this was due to the, the new Church vicar coming into place. Um, the previous Church vicar had unfortunately had some health issues and had to retire pretty quickly, and we were in the process of negotiating the lease with them

Um, unfortunately she had to, to drop out very quickly and it kind of left us in a bit of a limbo because the, the church PCC and the diocese wouldn't let us sign a new lease without a new Reverend vicar sort of being in there, um, because obviously it's their point of view and they want to say what they want to do with the church hall because we are still classed, it is still classed as a church building. So, um, it left us a bit in the limbo and it took, It took virtually 2 years to get a new reverend in, so by the time they come into place, it was like 2017, and he was brand new to being a church reverend as well, so he was still trying to find his feet and trying to work out what he wanted to do. And, um, as soon as he came in, he said, well, I'm not going to speak about a lease for at least a year and a half because I wanna find my feet first

So that took a little while there. So it took quite a long time, um, and to be fair, we didn't, we didn't push the situation, um, because we didn't want to find ourselves being evicted as well. He did, he did, to be fair to him, he did come in and say, we class it diocese classes a roll-inning lease

Now we weren't too convinced it was a rolling lease because you saw the paperwork saying that it's up to a certain year and it's up to a certain year as far as we're concerned, but we were happy to stay and we wanted to continue here. So we kind of worked on a rolling lease and then it got to a stage where bits of the building started to break, and I, I, I went and sat with the church and I said, look, you want to, we've got this rolling lease. Um, in this lease it says we have to maintain the building

We're not able to maintain the building now because if we want funding, we have to have a lease. It's as simple as that. We can, we can't go to somewhere and say, can you have 1015, 20, 100,000 and say for a building that could be taken back off us any time

You know, that's successfully resolved now. So yeah, so, so what happened was, um, we got to the stage with the funding, we'd applied for and we had to put in the funding, um, to say that we wanted to, we didn't have a 5 year lease and Robin, um, come back and said, well, we can give you to the end of September to get a lease in place. If we don't have a lease in place, then obviously we're not eligible for the money anymore, so

We managed to resolve the issue pretty quickly. It took a lot of work over the summer of 2023, and we actually got the lease in place about two days before the deadline. Uh, unfortunately solicitors for the church had gone on holiday and not told us and um, yeah, we were kind of left

So we managed to get resolved. We got a new 5 year lease put in place as of 2023 with a right to renew after the five years for another five years. So it's essentially a 10 year lease if we choose to go down that path

So in September 2028. Are we, we'll look at it again, or sorry, that's when the the the lease ends. So we'll look at it a few months before that and just say you're reactivating our new lease we would hopefully we should do so um and I noticed on your website there's many, many groups that use this building and and

For the application, I think you were um looking to get improvements to the building that's already existing rather than building new things. So, um, how have you found that's helping the resilience? I think you were mentioning how the windows were helping earlier on. Yes, so like I like I was saying to you earlier, the, the majority of the issues were on our building were wear and tear

Uh, a lot of things hadn't been addressed for years, um, and it goes back to before my time here. Um, like I said, the, the previous manager here had looked at other, other things that were more pressing at the time. Um, when I came into post, I noticed that things were starting to grow pretty quickly

So the building wasn't attracted to anybody. So when you've got a front door, it looks like it's about to fall off its hinges and people want to rent the building, they're coming in, they've already got this idea of, well, the cover is not very good, so the insides are not going to be great. Um, so it's cosmetically wise, we had to get the building addressed and the doors and windows, um, from that point of view, also from a heating point of view and an energy kind of point of view

It just wasn't holding its heat, the building, it was, it was losing heat all the time and we had people coming in and saying we're cold, we're cold, we're cold, no matter how much we put the, the, the, the the heating up by, it was still cold, um, so that really addressed the issues there and now. As I was saying earlier, now, since we've had the windows and doors changed, we're finding that we've actually had to turn the heating down, we've actually had people complaining now it's too hot, so it's a bit swings and roundabouts, but it's a nicer problem to have and it's an easier problem to address than what it was previously. Uh, so we've had that done, we've had new items built, new cupboards built, new storage space

We've had lighting replaced to make it more energy efficient. We've had all the toilets refurbished and changed, um, everything's been updated. And, um, yeah, it's, it's really helped the community cos now we're getting people coming in and saying, wow, this is much more appealing

Um, there's been a new community building built across the road which we were concerned about that it might impact what we do and whether they would, even though they came in and said, right, we're not going to duplicate anything you're doing, um, and if you could, if we could like work in tandem, it'd be helpful for the community, which has been absolutely fantastic. But we've had no downfall whatsoever. In fact, we've actually got busier even though the new buildings come across, so

I would say just cosmetically wise, it's made it much more appealing and much more attractive to the community. And yeah, our numbers for attendance to all our groups have just gone up. Um, before the community's resilience money, we had, on an evening, for example, we had 2 nights a week where it's being rented, now it's 5 nights a week

So it's different groups coming in. Doing different things, the, it's very much multi-generational, um, you know, we've got people who are still coming here in their in their 90s who started when they're in their 50s. They brought their children in, now their children are bringing their children in, and it's just, yeah, the building wise we are

Yeah, we're at capacity now. It, it's very difficult now for me to get any new groups in. Um, for instance, there is the, there was a community hub up the road

It was, it was the old Ambition house building and it was taken over by Oasis Academy about a year ago now, I suppose. Um, and unfortunately it's just been condemned, or it looks like it's about to be condemned, um, what I've heard. So we've got all the influx of all the people from there are now coming here as well, so

Yeah, it's really helped us, um, and like I said, 5 nights a week now and trying to get groups in and saying, right, well you start at 5 or you start at 6, but you've only got till 7 because I know group starts at 7 till 9. And everybody seems to be working together now, there's, you know, if you book for an hour, you get an hour. If there's nothing in after you've finished then, you know, take your time leaving, we're not, we're not gonna say right, you have to get out now

So, but yeah, it's just worked really well and um yeah. So it sounds like the windows, the doors, the electrics and everything has reduced costs. It's increased footfall and which probably hopefully for you would increase revenue

It's we've, it's helped us because we've not put our prices up for a few years. We've tried to keep our prices as low as we can for anything, especially with like the private hire, um. And any sort of activity we do, we try not to charge for or charge a bare minimum for basically and everything we have come in goes back into keeping the building going um and sorry

Very nice, it's a 02 number so it will be heating and electric, um, which constantly gets sold. Um, so, so yeah, so, um, sorry, I've lost my train of thought now what was the question again? Sorry. Do you know what? I can't remember, but I know you were saying how much it costs the cost, yeah

So, so the, we've kept the prices at a bare minimum, um, just because there are other community halls and things in the area that can be used, but we are probably the most popular one because of our location. We're right outside the rank of shops, so we get a lot of footfall for people that come and use the shops, so. We, we've tried to keep it lower and um appeal to the masses of people that are in the area, um, and yeah, we, we, every penny we get in goes back towards the centre, we don't

You know, we're not putting in flat screen TVs or, you know, doing, doing things we can't afford. It, it goes back to our costs and our revenue, and it helps pay towards that. We, we do need funding to keep the building going, which we have recently secured for the National Lottery for 3 years

I was going to ask you about future things how you would cope without the funding, but it sounds like. You're still making a lot of progress in in your area. I can say, when, when I first started, we were at the point where it was just going to be open for 6 more months

Um, we've managed to turn the building around and start being able to meet all our costs. We've, we'll always need funding no matter what, because we don't, we cannot charge enough to meet all the costs of the building, um, as you know, heating costs alone. In the last few years since, you know, COVID and since the war in Ukraine has just gone through the roof

Um, so we'll always need some sort of funding, um, and we built to a point where we felt that we were now meeting a significant amount of those costs and we decided we were going to go to the National Lottery. We'd had previous little pots from the National Lottery which up to about 10,000, um, to do bits and bobs and little bits of work. Getting repair work done with the lottery is, is notoriously more difficult because there's a lot more hoops to jump through for them

Um, so we went for running costs, basically. So we said, well, we've had community resilience funds repaired the building to a point now where it's really good. And we want to make sure we can keep the building open for the time

So would you say then that because you've been involved with the community resilience fund, it's enabled you to access greater funding. It's really, really helped. They were very, very impressed with what we've done with the Community residence fund money

Um, we were able to demonstrate that we'd, we'd looked at the building first and to get the building open and available to people and more accessible dis disability wise we're so involved as well. Just saying look we've had disability access come and looked at, um, we've ticked that box, we, we are open to older our main footfall for us is older people and people with disabilities. Um, mental health issues and such, so we were able to demonstrate to them by doing this, that we've, we've gone through Bristol City Council and Bristol City Council were approved of us, and that really did help us because I was told at the very start, we, when, because it was a two-stage application for the lottery, and when we got through to the second stage, she said, you're lucky to get through to 2nd stage because we don't tend to give out a lot of money at the moment in your area to people with disabilities and older people because we've done so in the past previously

And we feel we've done our time there in that area and we've moved on to another area now, so we were very much able to demonstrate that the community resilience fund had helped us massively. Um, so how does the outcome of the fund really compared to your expectations, the outcome of this fund, it's, yeah, I, I, I think it's been brilliant. um, it's it like I said, it's been a very I wouldn't say it's an easy process, but it's been a straightforward process and it's not a lot of sort of curves thrown at you and, you know, it, we were made aware of what we needed to do going in, um, what we'd need to do sort of like we're getting quotes and making sure everything

It was sustainable, looking at what was the best for us because as, as you probably might have heard from other groups, the, the cheapest quote is not always the best quote. Um, you know, you're looking at reliability and, um, making sure you get the right builders in. Making sure, you know, everything's done to a standard that you want it done to with the least amount of hassle

So, even though some of the quotes were cheaper, like fire door quotes, for instance, we had some that were 1000 pounds cheaper, but because we'd had this previous builder in and done work for us and had been dedicated to coming back and finishing the work and making sure it was done to how we wanted it. We said no, we want to go with that same person, um, like see our windows, the windows, there was a quote coming in from that slightly cheaper, but we'd had them before, so we knew what our track record was like, so we said, well, we're gonna, and it's a local business as well. Um, we tried to keep all the businesses like in near the area, so like Avermouth and Shohampton, um, Sea Mills, so it's, it's local business that we could get and help them build as well

And, um, and having them local, they're more likely to come out and help you quicker as well, so. You know, it kind of helped us in that respect. So then, just to, to finish off really, it sounds like the, the project has really helped you, not just be sustainable, but also sustainable for the future with, with getting enabling you to get access to other funds as well

Absolutely. I mean, we've got 3 years as of, we've literally just started this month, 3 years funding from the lottery. So that will take us up until what, 2028

Um, and with with the money we will. Accumulate during that time as well. You're probably looking at 4 or 5 years at least before we need any more funds

Um, that's not to say we won't apply for other bits of funds if we want to do a new group, for instance, where the funding becomes available, then we'll, we, we'll access that if needs be, um, but it's, it's just, yeah, it's just really helped us. It's taken a massive burden off our shoulders, um, because if I hadn't been able to get the, the community resilience fund. Then I would still be now looking for funds to replace these items, and it would add a massive knock-on effect and other issues wouldn't be being addressed

So by being able to do that, even though, um, it's, you know, it's taken a good year and a half to get the work done, which is probably longer than we anticipated. But because of the building being used so much, we've had to have a lot of the building work done around half terms, um, Because, would you like me to talk about the other community groups we've got here that have benefited as well? Would that be beneficial to you? I think yes, if you, if you'd like to, we've got on site, we've got Lawrence Weing Transport Group, which is um a group that aims at doing door to door transport for the area for Shehampton, Lawrence Weston seamills, as far as Cripps Causeways they pick people up and they take them to shopping and such, um, doctor's appointments, dentists, hospital visits. So that's, so they've been on site now for quite a few years, so it's benefited them as well because they've got a new office with new lighting, new doors

Which means they're meeting regulations, it's more attractive to people coming in for them as well. So they're able to help with us, so they, they do a bus service that actually goes past here every hour on the hour for the weekdays. So they're able to take people from the, from areas that they can't get here and bring it to us

Um, so they've got, like I said, disabled and older people on their buses. We've also got Lawrence West School's community group that are more sort of like a children's group. Um, and they operate from 3 to 6 o'clock weeknights and school term times

So we have lots of children coming in the building, which then brings parents in, grandparents into the building. Which then means the activities we get are being looked at because they're stood there waiting for their child to come out and they're looking and thinking, oh what can I do, where can I go? Oh, I can, I can go to lunch club, I can do gentle, I can do this, I can do that. And oh, we can have our child's party here on the weekend

So we'll, we'll, we'll put the place out and have like a, a birthday party or something like that, so. It's um it's benefited them as well because the building's obviously more attractive for children and more attractive for older people coming in and safer and safer, yeah, um, and by having the doors changed and the locks changed on the doors, we're now able to say to people, you can lock yourself in. It's a twist lock, so you can lock yourself in when you come in

Um, you know, if you're here like the children's group, obviously they can't let other adults come in on an evening unless it's a parent. So they lock themselves in now, so they're safe, they're secure, they've got fire doors that are easy to open up and get out of. Um, all the doors are lightweight, so it just makes the whole building much more attractive and much more open to the community and, uh, yeah, it's really, really helped us and like I said, a lot of the work that's been done, because we've got long, long, long warranties like the doors and with 10 years warranties on them

Um, they're gonna be right for a very long time and it's not gonna cost us hardly anything to get repairs done to them because of the warranties. Um, and the standard they're built to, so. Yeah, it's it's really helped us long term for the future and um

You know, we can address other issues in the building now that need addressing and it's just taken a massive weight off our shoulders. That's so lovely to hear. Ash, thank you so much

Thank you, because you've really given us an insight into how the money has not just made you sustainable but also for the future for other groups as well, so it's helped their sustainability. So thank you very much. Thank you

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