ANOTHER LARGE HALL A LARGE CAFE OUTDOOR CAFE AREA LARGE KITCHEN SHOWERS CHANGING ROOMS ADDITIONAL TOILETS DISABLED TOILET STORAGE OFFICE SPACE RECEPTION BABY CHANGING ROOM
The Adventure Begins
On the 12th May 2025 we started construction on the new extension. During the first 2-3 months the grounds are being prepared, drainage being installed, existing drainage by-passed, and the foundations installed. This first phase will also see the existing building's lighting being changed over to more energy efficient fittings/bulbs, while the utilities will be installed ready for the next phase real soon. Watch this space for news on the foundations being completed, steel arriving, and the frame of the building being erected and visible. It's exciting times, and we're gearing up to create something special. SCROLL DOWN THE PAGE TO FOLLOW OUR JOURNEY AS IT HAPPENS
WHAT WOULD LIKE IN OUR NEW EXTENSION?
As part of the feasibility study to gain the funding for the extension we've gathered a large level of ideas, and it's so exciting to hear what you'd like in our increased capacity and building. We want more suggestions though, so please feel free to send your ideas of new classes, equipment, and suggestions. While we may not be able to do everything, we'd certainly love to hear from you and have you join us on this journey.
MONTH 2 OF PROGRESS
On the 9th June we witnessed significant progress on the extension as month two of the 12 month project kicked in. With lots of vehicles coming and going, mixers, heavy goods arriving, drainage and other utilities being progressed, it was exciting to see foundation concreate being poured and the pace picking up.
WHAT NEXT.... Over the next few weeks some more utilities ground works will take place, while the foundation concreate will be completed and ready for that final section to be completed. You will see little spikes on the concrete which is for the steel to be positioned. In the next couple of months the steel will arrive and it is then you will see the outline of our extension taking shape, and a better idea of what the building will look like.
MORE PHOTOS TO COME. Burns construction have kindly offered to forward arial photos of the site, and this will show progress as each month passes, while there will be a 3D drawing of the steel and frame posted soon, and that gives you an even better idea of what the extension will be like. As always, we appreciate the communities support as we progress through this project, and we are relieved to report NO reduction in centre attendances and support.
MONTH 3 OF PROGRESS JULY
On Monday 11th August we will see the first sections of steel being installed, with an estimation of 10 days for the entire frame to be completed. It is at this point you will start to get a feel for the new extension and what it might look like. After the steel work is complete, you will start to see some of the work being started to get the building into a wind and water-tight condition. This means walls, floor base, and roof. Then the major interior work starts while at the same time planning will be well underway to do work within our existing building. We will be changing all of the internal lights to become sensor lights that are energy efficient, while there will be an additional fire exit installed in our main hall to meet fire regulations due to the combined capacity of both sections of our building.
LOTS OF PLANNING CURRENTLY ONGOING. The team have been busy planning how the new kitchen will look, what equipment we need, how the office will be set-up, and how we will roll out the timeline to start creating the programme. There's numerous moving parts of a project of this size, which becomes significantly harder due to our team having to run our existing service, but so far, with your support, we are coping- albeit with additional pressures being felt.
SO FAR SO GOOD WITH SUSTAINING SERVICES AND INCOME. The first 1/3 of the financial year has passed, and while there has been a very small dip in cafe income so far, and some increased costs, the centre remains on a strong financial footing while maintaining the same size of programme as pre extension start. This is a great achievement from our team, and I would like to thank all of our centre users, committee, volunteers and my small staffing team for their tremendous achievements to date. It's not been easy, but then again, nothing worth-while ever is. So thank you all for your continued support- WE NEED YOU NOW MORE THAN EVER.
Watch this space shortly for photos of the building upon completion of the steel frame.
MONTH 5 OF PROGRESS SEPTEMBER 12TH
From the middle of August to the 12th September we've seen huge strides in the extension project, and we can now give people a better idea of the size of the building. The steel frame was completed, brickies have been busy, and the site is now starting to get busier will deliveries, more workers on-site, and a sense of anticipation is building. From some angles it feels really big, from others, while standing in the middle of the new planned cafe space, it feels smaller than what the plans suggest. We know in reality that it's going to be much bigger than our existing cafe, while the new hall, kitchen, storage, office, showers, changing rooms, toilets, kitchen and outdoor seating area really will give us a significant level of additional space. This week the exterior walls have been completed, hardcore has filled the entire area that's in preparation for the concrete top level. We'll soon witness exterior high level walls being put in place, and then the internal structures start to be positioned. Within our existing building we will replace all of our lighting the week commencing 24th November, while behind the scenes we are having many meetings, planning, and having regular communications with the good folks of Burns construction, who have been excellent to work with. As Paul the site manager said, we need to crack a few eggs to make an omelette, and while there may be some challenges along the way.....the rewards are huge. Excitement is building!
MONTH 6 UP TO 27TH OCTOBER
Things have been progressing nicely over the last 6 weeks, and as the colder darker nights draw in, it's a race against time to get the building wind and water-tight before the snow arrives. The contractors are confident that this will happen, and it will give us a real feel for the space once the walls are up.
As you can see the scaffolding has been erected around the building and that was to allow the second floor to be installed, that houses the heating system, while it gives the platform to start the construction of the exterior walls. During the 3rd week in October there was the completion of the bottom level concrete pouring, while the second level concrete was poured 27th October.
During the last week of October and into the first 2 weeks of November we will see the next significant steps take place, where the second level concrete will be complete, the roof will start to go on, and the walls will be visible by the end of November.
Behind the scenes, the centre management are working tirelessly to secure funding for the long term sustainability of the centre via several funding bids, while we have a go-fund-me page live that will be raising money until late summer to try and create a new library service. Further, we continue to develop the plan in order to build a significant new programme, attract new business, and ensure we have the most comprehensive equipment plan so that we open with a bang. There's a colossal amount of work yet to be done, and no doubt many a challenge in order to see the finished article.
UPDATE TO 19TH DECEMBER 2025
Exciting times here at Inchgarth as we entered month 7 of the project, and this time we can report that all of the lights in our existing building were replaced, some snagging done, and we have a full centre of low energy long life, low carbon footprint lighting. This was a fairly messy project that resulted in a week of lost business and activities, but it's been worth it to see significant upgrades to our centre. We also built a new double door fire exit in our existing hall and replace the current fire door (again messy but fantastic for us to get larger pieces equipment through the door now)
Within the extension the building was completely wind and water tight and internal walls were constructed that gave us a real feel for the space. The team got the opportunity to tour the new build and it was tremendous to see the cafe, kitchen, new hall, showers, office, outdoor cafe space, storage, showers, changing room and lovely wide open space at the reception. Oh, did we mention that there's going to be automatic doors as you enter the new extension?? How posh are we!!
We can just about picture it, people enjoying a coffee besides the large windows facing onto the football pitch, seeing the world go by, enjoying the buzz that the new space will create, where old and new buildings merge to provide the most wonderful space, facilities, and opportunities for decades to come.
THANK YOU BURNS CONSTRUCTION. We must thank the team at Burns construction and the site manager Paul once more for their excellent work, and the council officers for their efforts too. It's starting to feel real now, and the excitement is certainly growing, but there's much to be done.
ANTICIPATED OPENING DATES. It's still too early to give you a firm date, but we are hoping to have the building held over to us any day between 8th May and the last day in May, where it will take a further 3-4 weeks for us to get the building operational, but rest assured we will keep everyone updates.
A VERY SPECIAL OPENING We have taken steps to have the building officially opened by a very special guest, but more on that later....... There will also be one helluva community opening and celebration, and you just know it's going to be tremendous, as no one else does parties and celebrations like Inchgarth does! Again, more on that one later...
31ST JANUARY 2026 UPDATE
The team visited the extension on the 30th January and we were delighted with the progress, where there was a clear outline for us to vision the new hall, cafe, and other spaces. Unfortunately the light wasn't great due to the time of year, but the good news is that at the point of writing this update on 24th February, there has been even more progress and lighting will soon be in place all over the building. This means we will be in a position to give you better quality photos and a feel for the space.
POWER TRANSFORMER. The power transformer is now in place having been shipped from far over-seas, with the ongoing legal work relating to leases, agreement, access progressing well after a worrying period on inactivity.
EQUIPMENT. The cafe equipment is on order, the new servery is being built for the cafe, while the planning to ensure every piece of equipment that we require is in place is also at the advanced stages.
LIBRARY. The new library within our existing cafe is being planned and will involve reflooring our existing cafe, a full rip out, pain job and the building of the various shelving, kids library space, and installation of the comfy tub seating. We will focus on this once the extension has been completed.
BIG COMMUNITY CELEBRATION TO OPEN THE EXTENSION. The proposed date for a big fun day, topped off by a live band and drinks reception in the evening, is 22nd August, while we are currently awaiting news on a very, very special guest for the official opening of the building. More on that to follow.
WINDOWS HAVE BEEN INSTALLED. Great progress has been made with the windows now in place, replacing the temporary wooden structure, and looking fantastic.
BIG HALL SOON TO BE COMPLETED. In the next 2 weeks the new main hall will be painted, the flooring down, and sealed off ready for a big clean upon the completion of the rest of the building. This is exciting news.
PROGRAMME FOR THE NEW SPACE We are well underway with the programming of the new hall, and it's all very exciting with new activities that Inchgarth hasn't had for years. We're also taking bookings now for clubs, societies, individuals and organisations to deliver their activities in our new hall.
TIMESCALES TO OPEN. The date to have the building held over to us has moved slightly from the 8th May to a time between 22nd and 29th May. This may change slightly, while we will require 2-3 weeks from that point to build equipment and get the space ready to welcome guests.
4th March 2026 update
Since the end of March update things have moved quickly, and the team are visiting the new facility much more regularly. Even within a 2 week gap between visits we have noticed significant progress, and the next visit is 6th March where the committee and staff will be having a look around, and more photos will be posted to keep you all enthused. There is a notable increase in the level of workers on the site, while our own team are extremely busy planning the programme, equipment needs, staffing, volunteer needs, and works to our existing building. What you won't see is the colossal level of behind the scenes time, planning, and juggling of priorities and great credit goes to everyone involved at every level of this project. As it stands, the most recent update is that we will be given the building on 29th May, with an anticipated opening at the end of June 2026.
THE BRIDIE O' CONNOR HALL
NEW INCHGARTH HALL. TO BE NAMED THE BRIDIE O' CONNOR HALL.
FROM THE MANAGER. On Tuesday, I got the most amazing surprise that genuinely touched me. At the end of Inchgarth's management committee meeting under AOCB, Gary raised a motion that the new hall should be named after my late mum and asked the committee to vote on it. There was a unanimous agreement, and suffice to say it was an emotional moment that I will be forever grateful for. I knew nothing about this, which in itself is amazing how they managed to keep it a secret. It's not often anyone will surprise me or shut me up, but the kindness and compassion behind this gesture done just that, and coming out of the blue I admit to being somewhat emotional at the time.
It's something special to me, and means the world. I'm in shock that people would even consider doing something like this for me and my wee ma, and she will now remain part of the community for many decades to come. In 1996, my ma was one of the founding members of the new committee along with Scott, Wendy Duncan, Amelia Leys, a few others and I, where along with those people, she played a vital role in the regeneration of the centre for 15 years and gave her time for hundreds upon hundreds of kids in the community. . She and others laid the strong foundations to allow the centre to become the place that it is today.
It is my wee ma that gave me the support, push, platform and when needed- put in my place, and to be part of the centre's team where I hope we retain the spirit of Bridie in all that we have done, and what we hope to achieve in the future. I want people to know and understand, because sadly there are those who will judge. I had no involvement, no say, and no clue this was being done, but I am grateful and proud of the gesture, and dare I say it, emotional about this kindness.
How fitting....The Bridie O' Connor Hall. Love ye ma.
