VILLAGERS in Norton and Lenchwick have been assured they will never be without a village hall.

Concerns were first raised after rumours the relatively new village hall in Norton was to be knocked down as part of a planned development on the adjacent Working Men's Club site.

Smith Wadley Homes Ltd of Great Comberton bought about seven acres of land in Norton, which encompasses the club, the football field, play area and allotments, but not the village hall site.

Despite this, director of Smith Wadley, Tony Wadley, said preliminary discussions with residents had included the possibility of re-siting the village hall to allow for further housing.

Chairman of the village hall committee, Neville Holder said: "The company has never even approached us.

"The suggestion to pull down the village hall and re-site it is a bit galling, especially as it is quite new and I played a major part in raising funds to get it built in the first place."

Decision

Despite his own personal feelings Mr Holder said they would make no difference to any decision his committee took if it was approached by developers.

"It would be a majority decision taken for the good of residents as a whole, after their views were given full consideration," he said.

In the meantime, Mr Holder has sent out letters to all residents.

"Villagers can be assured that there is no question of the parish being without a hall," he added.

"The current hall is in regular use every evening from Monday to Friday offering short mat bowling, badminton, yoga and is the centre for many local societies.

"Whatever the outcome of any discussions that may take place, the existing hall will continue to be the centre for many village activities for some years to come."

Smith Wadley have not yet applied for planning permission for either site.