Crumbling wartime-era hall brought back to life

Piddinghoe Village Hall began life as a farm building built pre-1918

Work to bring a historic village hall in East Sussex back to life has begun after a community raised £174,000.

Piddinghoe Village Hall was once a farm building, built towards the end of the First World War. It was converted to a hall in 1972 and has been crumbling in recent years.

But after a series of community efforts to generate funds, work to restore and modernise the building has now begun.

Sarah Woolger, chairwoman of the Piddinghoe Village Hall Committee (PVHC), said they were "so grateful" to everyone who helped raise the cash to make the hall "warm, welcoming, modern and energy efficient".

She added: "It is a huge achievement and will allow us to put on more events and be the focus of our community."

The work will take 14 weeks to complete and includes fitting an upgraded insulated roof, an extended kitchen, energy efficient heating and damp proofing.

The building will also be made accessible for people with disabilities, and the new toilets will even be available for use when the hall is closed.

The PVHC is still fundraising for its "masterplan", which will see further work on the kitchen, radiators and solar panels.