Major Barnham scheme goes on show to public

The proposals for the 1.5m new multi-purpose facility on Murrell's Field will be displayed at the current Barnham Parish Hall in Yapton Road.

The opening times will be 10am until 4pm on Saturday and Sunday, April 19 and 20.

The exhibition will be repeated at the same times the following weekend.

Barnham Parish Council chairman Cllr Mike Young said: "We are being optimistic about this scheme.

"Hopefully, it will go ahead. We really need this building. We can't use the current hall as a community centre."

The present village hall dates from 1927. It is suffering from subsidence at both ends.

Only one user can be accommodated at a time.

The limitations led some 20 years ago to the first attempts to replace it. These fizzled out, though a group of volunteers called BLADE managed to secure the neighbouring Murrell's Field off Church Lane for a sports centre.

But the proposals to create Barnham's first leisure site have never become reality.

The plans for two football pitches '“ one senior and one young '“ a trim track and a cricket table have been incorporated in the community centre scheme.

The building would feature changing rooms as well as a main hall with stage, a hall capable of being divided into two rooms, pre-school facilities and a youth club, said Cllr Young.

It is also proposed to have a medical unit for clinics, a first aid centre and a doctors' surgery.

Initial talks with the surgery at Yapton have seen the GPs willing to use the space.

This will overcome the absence of a surgery in the Barnham area.

The replacement centre and changing facilities have been given outline planning permission twice by Arun District Council.

Cllr Mike Young stated it was hoped to apply for detailed permission later this year.

This would be in keeping with a proposed opening date during 2012.

Building the centre would be a major undertaking for a parish of Barnham's size, he stated.

It comprised some 570 households to make only one third of the village most people consider to be Barnham.

The larger portion '“ 1,500 to 1,600 households as well as the railway station '“ was in Eastergate parish.

But it was hoped the financing of the scheme could be achieved without any debts.

The parish council had accumulated about half the estimated cost of the new centre.

It was hoped grants would account for the rest, he added.

A person was applying for grants on behalf of the council to make up the shortfall.