Dear Sir/Madam

We are referring to a letter dated 27 April 2003 from the Horstead Tithe Barn Community Association concerning admittance to the Tithe Barn at 8.30am.

For the last 2 weeks we have attempted to set up each morning within the new restricted time limit of ½ hour rather than the hour available previously. Within the 30 minutes we have to set up tables and chairs; posters, displays and 2 rolls of carpet; dolls and pushchairs; books; ride on toys; climbing frame; cars, car mat and garage; train set; play food; home corner and craft activities to name just a few. As you can imagine this cannot be achieved within the 30 minute time limit as the climbing frame alone takes 2 people 15 minutes. Then we need to plan and organise activities for the morning.

As we are finding it difficult to set up the nursery up by 9am parents are concerned because they are unable to settle their children in a relaxed manner before nursery starts. Also parents going on to work from nursery are now being delayed.

For the last 11 years we have been allowed to set up from 8am but as per a letter dated 8 April 2003 this has been changed to 8.30am and we are unsure why. Other hirers such as the badminton, line dancing and short mat bowls clubs only have a minimal amount of equipment to be set up which is easily achievable within ½ hour.

At present we are hiring the hall regularly on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings. The cost of this is £2,496 per annum which equates to £208 per month. This is payable every month even through all the school holidays and the 3 weeks that the Jubilee Players have sole use of the Barn. Therefore, the cost to us per morning is £13.

We acknowledge the need to charge a rent of £2,496 for the running costs of the Tithe Barn. This is why we made a proposal to Glen Gould to increase our cost per morning session to £16 allowing us to hire the Barn from 8am but pay term time only. There is no loss of revenue to the Tithe Barn. Potentially this allows extra hire of the Barn during the school holidays (e.g. for birthday parties) creating extra income and benefits the community as well. We felt this was a very fair proposal but a letter dated 27 April 2003 made no reference to this suggestion. The nursery is prepared to meet the increased cost of £16 per session when in use. However, we do not have sufficient funds to cover the increased cost during the school holidays as well.

Therefore, we felt it necessary to contact Veronica Savage at the Norfolk Rural Community Council to discuss the matter further. She also felt our proposal was extremely fair and should amicably resolve the concerns on either side. Veronica also stated that she did not know of any other village hall that made charges to playgroups and nurseries during school holiday periods. She has requested that a copy of this letter be sent to her, which we will arrange to do.

A further suggestion was made by Veronica Savage to negotiate a different contract when the current one expires. We can find no reference in the contract stating a set up time of ½ hour in fact there is no set up time mentioned at all. We should also like to stress that no heating is required before 8.30am each morning should this be a source of concern (as stated in the letter dated
8 April 2003).

It would be a great loss to the community and children of the village if the nursery was forced to close over an issue which hopefully can be easily resolved.

Sarah Softley
Mulberry Bush Nursery

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

From the Chairman for the Tithe Barn

In view of recent events between the Tithe Barn Committee and the Mulberry Bush nursery we would like to point out that the nursery fees have not been increased. The Terms and Conditions of hire state that all regular hirers get ½ hour free set up time and ½ hour clear up time. However, the nursery requires a further ½ hour to set up which they have to pay for as would any other hirer.

Five other regular hirers have agreed to their contract. However, the nursery has now decided (6 months into new contract) that they do not agree with their contract.

The hiring cost to regular users is £13 per 3 hour session and they pay for 48 weeks to ensure their bookings. This includes full use of the Barn and storage facilities.

The Tithe Barn Committee cannot give any concessions to private businesses or anybody else.

If the Tithe Barn does not meet its expenditure there will be no Tithe Barn, let alone nursery.

Glen Gould

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

From the Mulberry Bush Nursery

Dear Parents

With reference to my previous letter I stated that the Tithe Barn Committee were no longer allowing nursery staff to enter the building until 8.30 in the morning.

Staff do need to be in at 8.00 in the morning to ensure all the equipment is safely set up and ready for the children’s arrival at 9.00am to meet with Ofsted and Health and Safety Regulations. This definitely cannot be achieved within the ½ hour now allowed.

I have sent letters and met with the Tithe Barn Committee to try and resolve this problem. The Tithe Barn Committee will only allow us to enter the building at 8.00 in the morning at an extra cost of £384 per annum. The nursery cannot cover this extra cost as we have also been informed that there will be a further rent increase in January as well.

I have proposed an alternative suggestion to the Tithe Barn Committee whereby I hired the hall term time only (at present I pay for school holidays as well) and increase the rent per morning to accommodate the cost of the extra ½ hour. This enabled the rent to stay exactly the same per annum and allowed the Tithe Barn to hire the hall out during the school holidays as well. However, this suggestion was extremely unacceptable to the Tithe Barn Committee.

Regretfully, I am now left with no option but to close the nursery at the end of this half term. Running the nursery over the last 11 years has been a challenging and rewarding experience filled with many happy memories both for myself and staff members.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank you all very sincerely for your kindness and support over the years.

Yours sincerely

Sarah Softley

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Dear Committee Members

I am writing to ask that you consider again your decision to raise the charge for the hire of the Tithe Barn for the Mulberry Bush Nursery. I know that costs have to be covered and that you have to run the Tithe Barn on a sound financial footing. I would ask that you make an exception in the case of the Mulberry Bush Nursery because of the service that it provides for the local community.

As you may know, the local nurseries in Horstead and Coltishall provide the first part of the Foundation Stage for children. The second part of the Foundation Stage is provided in the Reception Class in school. This, as the name suggests, is the foundation of the children’s learning and represents a vital element of children’s education. It is the foundation upon which primary school and, later, high school builds.

There is only one local authority nursery in the whole of the Broadland Cluster area, which is totally inadequate for the number of children of pre-school age in the local villages. We rely on people like Sarah Softley to provide good, high quality nursery provision in the local community.

I hope you will reconsider your decision.

Chris Jones
Headteacher

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Dear Tithe Barn Committee

We were very upset about the news that Mulberry Bush Nursery will be closing at the end of this term. We have found that Sarah Softley and her team run an excellent service for the local community of families. Our daughter has been there for a year now, and they have been a great help and support as she has severe learning difficulties. This causes extra paperwork and meetings, visits and liaison with other people and organisations involved with Annabel’s care, but nothing has been too much trouble. Our younger son has just started and is getting integrated. We are very unhappy that after all the effort to get support workers in place and the children settled that we are all going to have to go through it all again.

We do not know the background to Tithe Barn, and whether it is run as a trust, or whether it has any constraints to be of any value to the community or whether it should be run solely on a commercial basis. Business logic does indicate that a playgroup is one of the most likely uses for a regular consistent income, and that one of the size that Sarah runs is about right. The rent does seem high in comparison to other village halls etc. It does seem doubtful that other commercial uses would be suitable but maybe the committee knows better. There are certainly no better uses to be of benefit to the local community. The information available to us, from a callous business perspective, would point to the most sensible and logical plan being to increase income, without jeopardising your regular cash flow, by offering Sarah a 5 morning a week contract for term time only. This at a stroke would increase your income by 25% and still mean you have a potential additional 44% income from holiday bookings, and all this without anyone paying more than they are in effect paying at present. Of course if the committee is intended to have a social conscience then you would do all you could to help the

community and I doubt this issue would ever have arisen in the first place.

We trust that you will reconsider your decision to force the nursery to close, and at the very least you will reply, demonstrating clearly your reasons and logic, so that even if we may not agree then at least we could understand your good intentions and begin to heal the deep hurt that has been caused to us and many other members of the community, so that the Tithe Barn can look forward to a successful and prosperous future, not ongoing bitter feelings and antagonism from local residents.

Matthew & Sarah Hall