AFTER serving the village for 80 years Bridestowe Village Hall will close next week — ambitious plans to build a new hall are now in limbo.

With a second lottery bid for £206,000 turned down, the hall committee while disappointed is not prepared to give up its dream.

Hall committee treasurer Mike Jennings said: 'We are in uncharted waters now because although we knew the community would be without a hall for a while we thought we would have the money in place for a new one.

'Everyone complimented us on the bid but it seems we were about 18 months too late getting it in because the South West has spent all its allocation of lottery money.'

Mr Jennings said with a significant amount of lottery money going into the Millennium Dome and the Government taking money away from the Lottery Commission to use on education projects, charities were not doing very well at the moment.

The hall committee had raised £12,000 towards the £426,000 project and many other grant sources had indicated financial support, but this was subject to the major funding being in place.'

The treasurer said the committee could have gone for something half the cost that looked like an agricultural warehouse but members wanted a quality building.

'On one side of the sporting ground is a lovely church and we wanted an equally lovely building on the other side,' said Mr Jennings.

'We were going to build a bridge across the river so people who play sport can access the hall for changing facilities and the like.'

Planning permission was granted to construct the hall and everything was in place to start the build, apart from the money.

A brainstorming session will now take place to decide on the next step.

'Had we been less ambitious then maybe we would have got the money but the committee is very reluctant to give up on this lovely building,' added Mr Jennings.

A report on the current hall in 1997 identified problems with the building including fire-proofing and asbestos and concluded that it was coming to the end of its natural life.

Mr Jennings said the wooden structure, believed to have been transported to Bridestowe in the 1920s, was no longer safe to use.

The last event will be a short mats bowls evening on Tuesday, October 30, starting at 7.30pm, to which everyone is welcome.