Toddington Village Hall stands on the site of the 'Old School'. The decorative lintel below, recovered from one of the porches of the old school, is preserved in the Hall entrance.




The site was purchased by Toddington Parish Council from Bedfordshire County Council in 1987, with the aid of a loan from the Public Works Loans Board, repaid in 2000.




The above photo shows the Old School as it was in 1966, with Mr Dillingham, the Headmaster. The entrance from which the lintel was taken is out of shot to the right of the building.

Demolition of the school buildings took place in 1988, and for the next four years the site was used as a public car park.

Planning permission was granted on 10 June 1992 and construction started on 21 September 1992. The building was handed over to the Toddington Village Hall Association on 9 April 1993. The Hall was opened by Ethel Oakley, an elder of Toddington, and Samuel Child, one of its youngest citizens, on 10 July 1993.

The cost of constructing the building and surfacing the car park was approximately £190,000, towards which Toddington Parish Council had previously earmarked £90,000 from its reserves. Toddington Parish Council took a further 25 year loan from the Public Works Loans Board in March 1992 for the shortfall of £100,000, secured against Parish Council revenues.


Here is a receipt for a village market, an early fundraising event organised by the Toddington Branch of the Women's Institute, held in 1950. Despite these efforts, for many years a village hall for Toddington seemed a hopeless dream. Indeed, a press release from 1993 admitted that many people had forecast that there would never be a village hall in Toddington. There are perhaps three people who can take much of the credit for seeing the project through to fruition. First is Bernard (Bim) Hyde, whose network of contacts as a Councillor of long standing proved invaluable to help solve administrative problems at a high level. Next is Beryl Hyde, who at the time of writing in 2003 is the longest-standing Committee member, having been involved from the earliest days of WI fundraising. Last, but not least, is Doug Dix, who worked tirelessly as Hon. Secretary for the first ten years of the Hall's operation. Note also how many names on the WI market receipt are still common in the village, belonging to families that played an important part of Toddington's history: Boutwood, Candelent, Childs, Hart, Seymour, to name but a few.

Construction
The Hall is a single storey building covering c. 350 m2, of traditional brick and tile construction.

The external walls are primarily finished in a cream facing brick, with a contrasting rust coloured brick. The roof is in Redland Regent farmhouse red tiles.

It was fitted out and furnished from funds raised by Toddington Village Hall Association




Contractors
Here is a list of those responsible for construction:

Concept Architect:                            Keith Miller R.I.B.A.
Quantity Surveyor:                            Roy Chadwick M.S.S.T. (Walfords)
Architectural/Engineering Consultants:  Dorban Reeve Partnership
Main Contractor:                               Barretts Of Aspley
Car Park Contractor:                          Furlong Bros (Dunstable) Ltd




Our logo



Our logo, reproduced on each webpage, is a sign that can be found above the entrance to the Hall.

The sign was erected in 2001 to commemorate the start of the new Millennium, and the tenth anniversary of the Toddington Village Hall Association.

The sign depicts Herbert Groom, at the village pump on Toddington Village Green. Piped water did not come to the village until the mid-1940s. The image was reproduced from an original photograph (below) published in the Luton News in 1936.