General

1. Charlbury Corner House and War Memorial Hall (“the premises”) are run by Charlbury Corner House and Memorial Hall Trust, a Charitable Incorporated Organisation registration number 1196206 (“the CH&MHT”, “we” or “us”), as a non-profit-making charity for the benefit of the people of Charlbury and the surrounding area. The premises’ facilities include a number of rooms in The Corner House, the main hall, Garden Room, Green Room and kitchen in the Memorial Hall, and the Corner House gardens. All of these spaces are available for hire.

The purpose of our buildings and spaces is to benefit the well-being of the people of Charlbury and the wider community. We welcome the use of these spaces by all who wish to contribute in their own way to our overall mission. We ask for the cooperation of those renting spaces to comply with the rules, terms and conditions set out here, and especially to have respect for the buildings, equipment and spaces, and for other users and also the community at large. It is important to keep in mind the ultimate purpose of these buildings to try to ensure a successful future for the common good of all.

2. Your agreement to our terms and conditions. By booking or using any part of the premises for any activity, either individually or on behalf of a group, club, school or society, you (the hirer) are agreeing to these terms and conditions. They are available on our website or can be requested from our Bookings Manager (“the Manager”). We may amend these terms and conditions from time to time.

3. Hours of opening. The premises’ facilities will normally be available for hire from 10 am to 10 pm. Where appropriate, these hours may be extended by agreement with the Manager.

4. Whenever making use of the premises, you accept responsibility for the care and protection of attendees and the premises, and for ensuring that all the conditions relating to management and supervision of the premises are met. This includes ensuring that the doors and windows are securely closed, and that lights and any electrical equipment are switched off when you exit the premises.

5. Your Liabilities. The person or society official who makes a booking to use our facilities is liable for any damage caused to equipment or to the premises, both internally and externally. This excludes fair wear and tear. Any loss or damage to fixtures, fittings or premises property must be reported to the Manager or a CH&MHT trustee immediately.

6. Consideration for other users and local residents. Please leave the booked areas clean and tidy. When using any facilities, and when leaving the premises, please keep noise levels to a minimum. This is especially important when leaving in the evenings.

7. You are responsible for all your possessions while you are on our premises. We do not accept any liability for any loss or damage.

8. Free Wi-Fi is available for your use in parts of the premises. We do not accept liability for any loss or damage that you may incur whilst using our Wi-Fi system, or for illegal downloads or other misuse.

9. Footwear and clothing. We ask that users of the premises wear appropriate clothing, especially where the Memorial Hall is used for sports or similar activities, when either gym shoes or trainers with non-marking soles must be worn at all times. Roller skates, roller blades or skateboards may not be used anywhere on the premises, and the wearing of footwear with stiletto heels is not allowed inside the premises.

10. Bad behaviour. Aggressive, violent or other unacceptable behaviour towards other people will not be tolerated, and instigators will be barred from using the premises. This applies to the buildings and the outside areas such as the patios and gardens.

11. The premises are private property, and the Manager and trustees have the authority, while exercising their reasonable discretion, to require anyone to leave the premises immediately.

12. Parking. You must ensure that the Memorial Hall driveway is left clear of vehicles, and that vehicles are not parked on the garden grass, so that access is always available for emergency vehicles. Users of our premises are not allowed to park in the Bull car park (opposite), and must observe local traffic regulations.

Data privacy

13. Any personal information that you provide about yourself, children for whom you are responsible, or your organisation will only be used for our own legitimate purposes, and to inform you of any relevant news about us, or activities available at the premises. We will not pass personal data on to others unless asked to do so by public agencies such as the police, fire or other health-and-safety authorities. Any emergency contact, health or other relevant information is requested only for use to assist in emergencies, and does not imply any specific expertise or liability by the CH&MHT in relation to such information. We are registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office under the Data Protection Act.

Registration and Booking

14. We operate an online booking system, which will give you a clear picture of which facilities are available on any given day. You must register before you can make a booking. If you are a private individual, you will be required to pay for your booking in advance.

15. Bookings can only be accepted from adults (over the age of 18).

16. All bookings are on a “first come-first served” basis. If there is a clash of bookings, the Manager has the authority to make a decision.

17. We reserve the right to refuse or cancel any booking at any time, without reason. We will try to give you as much notice of cancellation as possible, and will refund you any fee paid. We will not be liable for any other expenditure or loss caused by a cancellation.

18. Cancellations. We ask you to give us at least seven (7) days notice of cancellation, so that other users can book facilities. If you do not give us such notice of cancellation, we cannot refund your payment. This condition also applies to “no show” situations when insufficient people turn up for an activity.

19. Late payment. Where we issue invoices for hire charges for our facilities, you undertake to pay by the ‘due date’ shown on the invoice. If you do not do so, your invoice will be subject to an escalating scale of late-payment surcharges unless you have agreed. deferred payment terms in advance with the Manager.

Health and safety

20. Our role is to provide premises that are in a safe condition for you to carry out your activities. It is your responsibility to ensure that you do so in compliance with current health and safety legislation.

21. Public notices. Please observe all the health and safety and house rules notices posted in the premises. They are there for your guidance and protection.

22. Child and vulnerable persons protection. If you (or your organisation) are working with, or are supervising children or vulnerable adults (except your own family members) it is your responsibility to obtain DBS clearance, and to comply with all appropriate safeguarding and DBS requirements. We will not accept any liability arising from your failure to do this.

23. You are responsible for properly supervising any children and vulnerable adults for whom you are providing activities, and must not leave such people unattended.

24. Fire and Emergency procedures. You must ensure that all persons using the premises within your group, or for whom you have responsibility, are fully aware of the fire and emergency procedures and fire exits (see the Fire Safety Instructions that are posted in the buildings). If the fire alarm sounds, you must immediately and calmly leave the premises by the nearest available exit, meet at the Fire Assembly Points, and comply with any directions given by the CH&MHT’s trustees and the emergency services.

25. You must ensure that the fire apparatus on the premises is not interfered with in any way, and you must ensure that no emergency exits are locked, obstructed or left open.

26. You must not make, or allow to be made, any alterations or adjustments to the premises’ electrical installations, or add extra lighting, or use electrical equipment in such a way as to overload the circuits.

27. You must ensure proper usage of the premises’ plumbing, including preventing any blockages to the drains.

28. All scenery, drapes, curtains, etc, whether on the Memorial Hall stage, in the auditorium or in any other part of the premises, must be rendered fire resistant and maintained in that condition.

29. You are responsible for ensuring that the kitchen and other catering facilities are used safely, and that you or anyone else who is using them on your behalf is fully conversant with using the equipment. You must wash and put away any cookware, crockery and cutlery that you use, and ensure that the equipment, work surfaces and kitchen floor are cleaned thoroughly before leaving.

30. You must report to us as soon as possible any failure of our equipment, or of equipment brought in by you. You must also report to us as soon as possible all accidents that involve injury to anyone for whom you are responsible (including, where appropriate, members of the public), and fill in a report in our accident book.

Licences

31. The premises are covered by a Theatre Licence and The Music Licence, which allows you to play recorded music during your activities. We do not hold an alcohol licence, and it is your responsibility to obtain one from West Oxfordshire District Council if alcohol is going to be sold at an event that you organise. Proof of such a licence must be provided to us at least seven (7) days prior to the event taking place. There is no restriction on serving alcohol responsibly at a private function.

Insurance cover

32. Please ensure that your insurance policy covers you for any activities that you or your group/club/society members undertake at the premises.

33. You must not do, or cause to be done, anything in any part of the premises that might invalidate our insurance or result in increased insurance premiums for us. It is your responsibility to find out about this. If you wish to engage in activities that might affect our insurance cover, we reserve the right to insist on you obtaining additional insurance at your own expense, or to refuse permission for you to engage in those activities. Hiring the premises for special public or private functions

34. Use of the premises, or parts of them, for public or private functions may be subject to the payment in advance of a refundable damage deposit (the amount of which will vary depending on the type of event or function being held). The Manager will determine the amount of this deposit.

35. On completion of the function, you must leave the premises clean and reasonably free of litter and refuse, with all equipment and lighting turned off and the premises secured on exit.

36. You are solely responsible for the well-being and safety of users and occupiers of the premises hired out under the terms of your agreement with us. You will indemnify us against all loss or damage (fair wear-and-tear excepted) and personal injury arising from such use, howsoever caused. The amount of your liability to us under this indemnity is not limited to the amount of the deposit.

37. You must ensure that no more than the permitted number of persons are present in a specific area of the premises. The maximum number of persons allowed in the Memorial Hall is 200, 60 in the Garden Room and 60 in the Morris Room in The Corner House

38. If you or your invitees are found to be in serious breach of the terms of your agreement with us, we reserve the right to terminate the use of the space hired immediately, and there will be no refund of the hire charge.

39. You have the right to cancel your agreement with us on giving no less than fourteen (14) days notice in writing to the Manager. We will refund any monies paid unless we have already incurred costs that are specific to your booking that cannot themselves be refunded. In the event that you cancel your booking, you accept responsibility for the settlement of any such costs.

40. Where dances are held on our premises, we have additional requirements:

• There must be no admission or re-admission after 10.30 pm;
• All music on a Saturday evening must finish at 11.30 pm prompt, and the hall must be cleared by 12.00 midnight;
• At least two lights must be on at all times during dances; and
• Licensees must shut the bar at least half-an-hour before the end of the function or by 12.00 midnight, whichever is the earlier time, and remove all remaining alcohol, empty bottles, cans, etc. from the hall and the bar.