Whitsome is a Berwickshire village, about three miles over the border into Scotland and with spectacular views across the Lammermoor hills. It now enjoys the many benefits of a light, modern community hall with a difference, thanks in part to Valencia Communities Fund. The company contributed £30,000 towards the building costs, drawing the money from the Landfill Communities Fund and managing the donation in association with Forward Scotland.
Whitsome Ark, as the new hall is called, accommodates a main function hall, community shop, post office and health visitor surgery. There's a meeting room, café area and post office, plus a fully equipped fitted kitchen, disabled toilets and a shower.
Prior to the building of the Ark, the 200 Whitsome villagers only had an old army hall on the edge of the village as a community centre; it was condemned following an ice storm. Determined to replace the old hall with something better, a group was formed to design and build a new community hall in a central location within the village. The project took four years to plan and bring to life and emphasis was placed on energy saving and conservation in all aspects of the building process.
The total cost of the Ark was £423,000 and Valencia Communities Fund's contribution went towards the provision of a state of the art ground source heat pump system and additional insulation. Water is drawn and stored in a tank, then injected through a myriad of pipes under the floorboards when required. This keeps heating costs to a minimum and ensures that the hall is warm as well as friendly throughout the year.
Whitsome Ark is run by a voluntary management committee, officially opened on 5th September 2009 by the Lord Lieutenant of Berwickshire, Major Alexander Trotter JP. "Getting the Ark off the ground has been hard work but everyone involved is very happy with the final outcome. The Ark is already proving to be a big hit and is making Whitsome a much more desirable place to be." Derek Russell, secretary of the committee, Berwickshire News.