By Chris Hobbs, Chair, Hassocks Community Association, Adastra Hall Management Committee

Long-standing residents of Hassocks will remember the concerted effort of Hassocks Community Association members in the early 80s to raise funds to get Adastra Hall built. A village lottery? The lottery ticket box on Orion Parade? Hassocks Fayre? Well, the team did it and 35 years ago, thanks to a great village effort, in 1987 Adastra Hall opened. Fast forward to today, and the hall is more popular than ever. All three rooms - the Main Hall, the Green Room and the Committee Room are in regular use for music lessons, group and club meetings, art classes, exercise classes, family parties, blood donor sessions, Jazz shows - you name it, and Adastra Hall can host it.

Running the hall is the ‘hobby’ of a volunteer management committee of seven, led by new Chair Chris Hobbs, who is now looking for additional support. The group meets monthly for a business meeting, then work continues in between sessions with each person taking a specific project forward. Already this year, the team has installed free Wi-Fi, replaced all the lighting for LED, had the floor re-varnished and launched a new website at www.adastrahall.com

On the project list are new hall curtains, new stage curtains, a revamp of the “Green Room” and much more... But to keep the hall going and make it the best it can be, the Committee are looking for three new volunteers - someone to help manage the property task list, someone to help develop the community clubs the hall runs, and someone who has project management skills to help lead a potential front-of-house refurbishment in 2023.

Do you have some hours to spare and want to give something back to the community? In the first instance, drop Chris a line - chris.hobbs@adastrahall.co.uk to find out more.