Annual halls events to take place

The volunteers who run Orkney’s halls and community centres are being invited to come together this week for Orkney’s annual Halls Event.

This year will actually see two events take place on different days in the Burray Community Hall, this week — one on Wednesday and one on Friday.

The annual event, organised by the Council’s Community Learning and Development (CLD) service and Voluntary Action Orkney (VAO), is now in its sixteenth year and is an opportunity for volunteers to network while receiving information on a range of topics affecting them.

This year attendees will cover a range of topics including a presentation by the Council’s Environmental Health team on the preparation of food in halls, the use of halls as emergency rest centres and the potential use of the halls as part of the 2023 Island Games.

Cheryl Rafferty is from the Council’s Community Learning and Development Service. She said: “This is a very popular event and those who have attended this in the past see it as very worthwhile, as well as being a bit of a social occasion.

“Last year fifteen representatives attended from twelve halls, however this year we are hoping to double the number of volunteers attending by holding the event twice during the week, on both an evening and weekend to make it more accessible to more volunteers.”

The event will run in Burray Community Hall on Wednesday, September 6, from 7pm to 9pm and Saturday, September 9, from 1pm to 3pm. For more information please contact Cheryl Rafferty, CLD on 01856 873535 ext 2432 or Edwina Lloyd, at VAO on 01856 872897.