Guide Hall Roof Replacement & Renovations

Please help us!

We are fundraising to replace the Guide Hall roof in order to secure the building from leaks and improve energy use. Improvements in the roof will reduce heating and lighting costs, provide easier maintenance of the roof structure and guttering, and ensure the fabric of the hall is protected.

Through fun, friendship, challenge and adventure we empower girls to find their voice, inspiring them to discover the best in themselves and to make a positive difference in their community.

In our relaxed and encouraging all-girl spaces, every girl can be herself and feel at home. No pressure, no judgement – just fun and learning with other girls, guided by our inspiring volunteers.

We won't tell them an activity is 'for boys'. Our girls get to score tries at rugby, go bouldering or simply play the games that they enjoy most.

We give girls somewhere they can talk openly about what affects them and get support from other girls.

These activities are undertaken in weekly, term time meetings for girls in five age groups;

Rainbows: For girls aged 4–7

Brownies: For girls aged 7–10

Guides: For girls aged 10–14

Rangers: For girls aged 14–18

What is the work and why is it needed?

Most of the current roof structure is from the original 1930s Guide Hall building with leaks and ongoing challenges for maintenance. The planned project will replace the roof with insulated modular panels providing a watertight roof, new ceiling and roof light windows.

Guttering will be replaced to reduce the risk of leaks from blocked gutters and to improve ease of maintenance.

The improved insulation of the new roof and window panels will increase our energy efficiency and reduce heating and lighting costs going forward.

Who will the project benefit and how?

All Barnes Girl Guide units meet in the hall; Rangers, Guides, Brownies and Rainbows. Currently there are 77 girls attending the units regularly. The hall is also used by a local community group to provide storage to support fundraising (Barnes Community Association). The hall has previously been used by other community organisations, provided accommodation for Girl Guide units visiting London, and been home to a nursery. We hope the refurbishment will enable the hall to be suitable for these and other community purposes in the future.

Who will manage the project (including timeline)?

The project would be managed on a day to day basis by Maguire Brothers Roofing, a company who have operated locally for over 40 years. The project will be overseen by the Trustees: Tim Grebot - who works in the building trade, Sue Richardson - District Commissioner, who works for a Church and has been involved supporting building projects in her job, and Anne Reeves, who has been involved in the oversight of other Guide Hall refurbishment projects.

The Qualified volunteer Guide leaders, District treasurer and other volunteers have attended meetings to discuss this project and are supporting it with practical assistance e.g. clearing the hall before works start and supporting fund raising.

Timeline

In order to avoid either additional costs in hiring alternative premises or cancellation of meetings, the work is planned for the school summer holidays 2025. Maguires Roofers are confident that the works can be completed in four weeks, with Guide leaders, volunteers and parents clearing the hall during June and July 2025 and completing deep cleaning and returning equipment in late August and early September for meetings to restart mid-late September.

Confirmed funding sources

This year, the District has very kindly been left a legacy of £3300 by a Guider who previously ran a unit. Fund raising activities by individual units and the District have enabled us to put £14000 into the roof project in the last two years. Over several years, monies have been put into a deposit account towards reroofing costs, this will provide £10000. This gives a total of £27,300 allocated towards the cost of the new roof.

Fundraising plan ( and what will happen if funds are not raised in time)

We are currently applying for various grants to secure the outstanding amount needed for the full roof replacement. This includes applications to the Heathrow Community Trust, The Barnes Community Association, The National Lottery Community Fund and The Barnes Fund. As each grant giving body has different criteria and timescales, we are unsure whether we will be successful in any of our applications. If we are successful in our early applications, we will withdraw our applications from the bodies which award funds later.

Each Rainbow, Brownie, Guide and Ranger unit have their own funds to buy equipment, pay for activities, and subsidise girls whose families are unable to pay for trips and subscriptions. The units have all agreed that if our funding target is not met in time, they would be willing to lend the District money in order to enable the fundraising period to be extended.

We are also starting this 'Go fund me' page in order to pay for the additional refurbishment work that will be needed once the new roof is in place. This will include a deep clean to remove all traces of asbestos from the hall that may settle after the removal of the old roof, refurbishment of the hall floor, decorating, external work on fences and gates, and upgrading of our outside space. Again, if our funding target for the roof replacement is not reached by summer 2025, we will extend our fundraising period for the additional works e.g. floor refurbishment in order to fund the work to secure the fabric of the hall with a new roof.

Total cost – £53782 (max grant £5000)

Total fund raising secured - £27300

Shortfall £26482