Colouring the Community

Leverington Village Hall has received a much needed lick of paint, thanks to a generous donation of paint from the local Dulux Decorator Centre on Forty Acre Road in Peterborough.

The Village Hall received the paint as part of the company's Colouring the Community scheme and also got a helping hand from seven volunteers at British Gas East of England, who nominated the project as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility Programme.

The volunteers from British Gas were joined by members of the Village Hall's jujitsu club who got to work freshening up the tired looking walls with pastel green paint and brightening the dark red ceiling with white paint. The window frames were also finished off with white gloss. This fresh look has transformed the dark, dingy building into a welcoming hub for community activity.

The Village Hall is an important part of the Leverington Community. It is home to many clubs and organisations including bowls, jujitsu and the local branch of the Women's Intitute. It also provides an ideal venue for private functions.

John Murdoch, project leader for the Village Hall make-over, said: "The paint donation has really transformed the village hall. With the help of our local Dulux Decorator Centre and Adam Smith, the store manager, we have turned the Village Hall from a dated, unattractive building into a welcoming function room.

"There were insufficient funds to redecorate and so we are very grateful for Dulux Decorator Centre's generosity. Adam and his staff were fantastic help and gave us lots of great advice, from choosing the right brushes to the best colours of paint to use. We hope the makeover will encourage more people to come and use the hall for functions, which in turn will generate some income for the Village Hall in the future."

Adam Smith, store manager at the Dulux Decorator Centre, said: "Leverington is a lovely village and we were very pleased to help out with this project. We hope that with our paint donation and continued support, the Leverington Village Hall will be visited for many years to come. I will certainly be recommending it as a venue for a party or celebration."