AFTER four years of extensive work to update Silchester Village Hall, a special ceremony was held on Friday to mark the final touches.

A topping-out ceremony was held to mark the finishing of repairs made to the hall’s roof.

Around 50 residents were welcomed into the hall on Friday where a ceremonial cutting of cake was done by North East Hampshire MP, Ranil Jayawardena and Hampshire’s deputy lieutenant Hugo Cubitt.

Before the cake was cut, chairman of the village hall, Steve Spillane welcomed the guests and thanked Hampshire County Council, Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council and Veolia Trust which helped provide the funding for the project.

The roof repairs cost £70,000 with the money coming from the county council’s Community Building Fund, the borough council’s Local Infrastructure Fund and Veolia Trust’s Landfill Communities Fund.

At the ceremony Mr Jayawardena said: “This is a great village hall because of the significant use from the community.

“In turn this had made a project like this possible and all the work from the volunteers who keep the hall running.

“The way that all different people have come together to make this possible is very impressive.”

The original hall was built at the end of the First World War by the soldiers who returned home from war and was completed in 1926.

In 2014 the hall was extensively updated and extended with a new kitchen and improved toilets, accessible toilets and baby changing facilities.

This project cost nearly £300,000 funded by the sale of a piece of land, public donations and grants.

Mr Cubbitt added: “Over the last four years there has been amazing work done by this community and the amount of work to make this happen should be commended.”

“It is one of the busiest village halls in the area so deserves the best possible facilities.”

The next projects at the hall is to refurbish the floors and purchase new chairs for the main hall.