History 

The present trust deed was drawn up in 1976 and declares the hall to be “for the use of the inhabitants of the Parish of Buckden without distinction of political, religious or other opinions including use for meetings, lectures and classes and for other forms of recreation and leisure time occupation with the object of improving the conditions of life for the said inhabitants”.  

Nomination of committee members by the Parish Council, the Church of England, the Methodist Church, the Youth Club and the Social Club were allowed under the trust deed but that method of appointment has fallen into disuse and all the members are now elected.

The hall has served many purposes over the last 100+ years and has been put to use as a meeting place, dance hall, bank, concert hall, theatre, art studio, classroom, coffee bar and even (during lockdown) as a furniture store.

In years gone by, part of the hall was used as a reading room where newspapers were read by anyone wanting to come in and catch up with the news.  No doubt news of the Russian Revolution and the Wall Street Crash must have seemed very distant in those days though events like the Yellow River Floods and the Kansas Dust Bowl may have seemed more understandable to a rural community with less contact to the outside World than we now take for granted.  Sadly, news of casualties from the two World Wars would have been all too real.