If, as a community centre or church hall operator, you are wondering how to help your community hub flourish, you aren’t alone.
We know that you have the best interests of your community at heart, but realistically, you know that visitor numbers, volunteer applications and income need to be sustainable to secure your community centre’s future.
There’s no cure-all for every challenge you may be facing, but having delivered kitchens for community centres, village halls and churches for over two decades, we know just how pivotal a part they can play in helping your hub to turn its fortunes around.
So, if you have one of the problems below and think a new kitchen may reinvigorate your community hub, we can show you exactly how a new kitchen has helped a community centre or church just like yours.
Community Centre challenges: how can a new kitchen help?
1. We need more visitors
Attracting visitors to community centres is perhaps one of the greatest challenges community centres in the UK are facing, according to the Charity Commission.
What’s more, many of these problems may feel out of your control: like having competition from other venues or being located in a quieter area of the country, for example.
However, what has been proven to generate buzz – and new visitors – is a programme of activities and events that brings people together. A kitchen is unique in unlocking many new opportunities for outreach, partnerships and events, such as:
- Regular catering for your visitors
- Catering for on-premises events (summer fêtes, car boot sales, sports events)
- Building partnerships by catering for local partners (e.g. sports, scouts and rotary clubs)
- Catering for private hire (such as parties and weddings)
- Cooking classes for your community
If you lack a kitchen, or you have a tired ‘kitchenette’ that doesn’t let you consider the opportunities above, it’s well worth considering the role a kitchen can play in reinvigorating your activity programme and drawing more visitors.
2. We need more volunteers
Of course, if you are struggling to attract as many visitors, you may also be finding it hard to recruit the volunteers who come naturally from that pool.
As we have mentioned, a new kitchen can help you deliver outreach events (such as village fairs) where you can connect with volunteering-minded people among the attendees or partners you support. However, we have seen that cooking classes in particular can provide some of the biggest appeal to volunteers, too.
If there are unsung kitchen heroes among your volunteers, giving them a ‘classroom’ (a well-stocked and modern kitchen) and willing students can help them engage in a fulfilling yet flexible volunteering commitment (from teaching ad-hoc classes to weekly lessons) that can have wide appeal for your visitors.
3. We need another income stream
The ‘f’ word in community centres – funding – can be a sensitive subject, but without it, you can’t provide facilities and activities your community deserves.
Funding is already a challenge without asking for donations from a community that may already be financially stretched, which is why many community centres are diversifying into private hire.
Kitchens are pivotal in making private hire a success – especially for events such as weddings and receptions, where you are often able to provide a more affordable option to other venues such as golf clubs, whilst also giving the person hiring the flexibility to choose their catering arrangements.
4. We need to think about the next generation
If you have been part of your community centre for several years, making the facilities fit for the next generation might be among your highest priorities.
However, many community hubs (church halls and village halls in particular) are in ageing buildings where the kitchen may be several decades old.
If you have ambitions of providing cooking classes and regular catering, you may already know that you need to provide a modern, spacious kitchen. However, making sure it is long-lasting, hard-wearing and conforms to health and safety requirements, will ensure it will also serve your community for decades to come.
That’s why a semi-commercial kitchen matches the best elements of durable design with characterful colour, and even sustainability, to make a futureproof kitchen for a community centre.
5. We want to make our kitchen more accessible
Last, but by no means least, if members of your community have accessibility requirements – such as mobility or cognitive disabilities, for example – you know how important it is to make them feel welcome and safe.
However, you might not know just how many elements go into making a kitchen accessible. For example, these can include:
- Designing kitchens without step height or elevation issues (common in old buildings like churches).
- Making sure islands, cabinets and units are sized/heighted appropriately for users who use wheelchairs.
- Designing kitchens in colours suitable for those with visibility impairments,
This is one of the reasons why it isn’t just a good idea to replace a kitchen as part of a wider accessibility transformation at your centre, but also to get the support of a kitchen design professional to do so.
With their advice, you can remain compliant with Equality Act legislation, as well as advise on any applicable standards your local authority’s access offers may require.
Remember: a more accessible kitchen widens the pool of visitors and volunteers who can use it. So, even if you don’t have a legal or ESG (environmental, social & governance) directive in place, accessibility in your kitchen will deliver added value.
This church convent needed an accessible, functional yet colourful kitchen for its elderly users.
We understand that some community centres are facing more challenges than others – which is why for those looking to factor a kitchen into their transformation and growth plans, we can do so with your bespoke needs and budget in mind.
All you need to do to see just what a new, durable kitchen could look like at your community centre, is get in touch and ask for our free design and consultation service, where we will produce a free 3D mockup of your kitchen – all of this, without spending a penny.
Just get in touch with us by calling 020 8254 0090 or emailing [email protected]
