Selfless work by church members help revive village hall

Two members of the congregation at a Wyre Forest Church have redecorated the outside of the Church Hall as a service to the local community.

Sam Neale has worked to renovate the hall

Sam Neale and his friend Maff spent around three months improving Wolverley Church Hall, which had fallen into considerable disrepair.

Mr Neale said he had been a member of Wolverley Church for around three years and had seen that the hall needed work doing on it.

He said: “I really felt that God had put into my heart that I needed to improve the hall.

"It was in a dreadful state but was still being used by a number of different groups.

"I bought some tins of paint and a couple of rollers and Maff and I began chipping away at it.”

The men received some donations of paint, including from the local B&Q and the Seabright Foundation donated £500 towards the project.

A local sign company also made a new sign for a donation and Mr Neale created a cross to go onto the outside.

He said: "It was a real community effort.

Rev. Sean Armstrong, Sam Neale and his son Archie pose outside the newly revamped hall

“We were very grateful to people who brought up cups of tea and coffee while we were working and my son, Archie even got involved with some of the painting.”

Shaun Armstrong is Vicar at St John the Baptist Church in Wolverley and said he was very thankful for the work done.

He said: “We are hugely grateful for Sam and Maff’s work and it is a huge improvement, and the hall looks cared for again.

"The hall has much history attached to it and remains a central hub for our church community events.

"Bookings have gone up significantly since the work was completed, and we’ve had lots more enquiries.

"We’d now like to raise funds to repair the windows too.”

The hall had looked dated and in much need of a refurbishment

Mr Neale said: “It really felt like a calling from God to get the work done.

"It wasn’t a straightforward job, and we were challenged by the weather, but we were determined to get it finished.

"It was a way of us giving back to the church and the community.

"We’re now hoping we can organise a night for local homeless people in the hall, providing them with food and somewhere they can come.”