Fun, Firefighters and Frights

 
Firstly an apology for the delay in publishing this blog post, but we have been very busy.

A lot of preparation was required for the Heritage Open Days but it really was worth it! We had held back in clearing too much around the building as we were keenly aware that any improvement to its appearance could have made it more appealing to a potential buyer, now that that threat has been removed it has been very rewarding to see the building, on the outside at least, look a little more loved.

Over the 2 weekends we were open for Heritage Open Days we had approximately 150 visitors, from across the city and much further afield, even as far as Norwich. We will never get bored with people saying 'Wow!' when they first see the Plunge Pool. The talk and tour was very well received, the value of the Spa and its grounds is certainly not a hard sell. Although this was a free event we received donations just short £250! Thank you to all!

On Tuesday 22nd October the Firefighters from Birley Fire Station came to help in the grounds, to say they did a brilliant job, is an understatement. We are so grateful for what they achieved, surplus saplings were removed and the true width of the path by the side of the Bath House was rediscovered. They made a huge difference and are keen to help out again at some stage. They will also be donating half the proceeds of a charity run they are doing to the Friends group, date to be confirmed.

Birley Spa held its first Halloween Trail on 31st October, the building was transformed into a spooky wonderland. It was fantastic to see so many of the local community attend, we cannot wait to do it all again next year, and who knows, we may even have electricity!

We are now an official Company Limited by Guarantee for charitable purposes, when we have raised funds of £5,000 we can become a Registered Charity, both of these things give us access to more fundraising opportunities and access to funding streams. The next step is clearly to raise as much money as we can because to apply to many of the big funders, for repairs to the building, we would be expected to provide a percentage ourselves. Sadly due to the current economic uncertainty the local businessman who was going to help us, is no longer able to do so.

We have been very lucky to be enrolled on the Prosper North mentoring scheme which will help us develop our business plans' long term sustainability. We may also be eligible at the end of it to apply to the Northern Cultural Regeneration Fund. We have attended a Social Enterprise and Trading workshop which was very interesting, although a little ahead of where we are now. We also have a business advisor provided by Prosper North whom we have now had two very productive meetings with.

The council decided that as there was a very comprehensive survey done of the Spa just over 12 months ago, there was no need for a second one and currently we are basing our repair plans on aspects of that. There is a possibility that the council will be able to fund some of the smaller, but urgent repairs to prevent further deterioration of the building. They have already been and cleared the grates and some of the gutters. We will be meeting with the council in the near future to discuss next steps.

Following on from the Firefighters marvellous work, we have decided that we will have regular volunteer sessions in the grounds, on the second and 4th Sunday of each month. At the present time we are extremely limited with the amount of tools we have, but much of the work we have to do is literally hands on, so bringing your own gloves is essential. The aim in the grounds is to remove all none native species like Yellow Archangel and then contain invasive growth such as Ivy, Holly and Brambles. The sessions will be 10 till 12 noon, the first one will be Sunday 10th November. Please come along if you can.
 
We are now moving into a new phase with the Spa and we are increasingly aware that the workload is growing. We will need to expand our committee in the near future, further details to be announced.

We will update you on the outcome of our next council meeting.