General Terms and Conditions of Hire

The Church Centre Team acts on behalf of The Church of the Good Shepherd, Parochial Church Council (PCC).

Hirers (or their representatives) must be at least 18 years of age and must be present on the premises for the duration of the hire.

These General Terms and Conditions of hire apply to the premises of the Church of the Good Shepherd, Queen Mary’s Avenue, Carshalton, SM5 4NP.

For Hall hirers, the General Terms and Conditions of Hire should be read in conjunction with Hall FAQs.  A copy can be requested from the Church Centre Team by emailing bookings@goodshepherdcarshalton.org.

Booking Requests

Booking requests for hire of the premises must be made to the Church Centre Team. The hirer must give full and accurate details of the purpose of the hire, along with their contact details including an email address and contact telephone number of the hirer. Please refer to our Privacy Policy for details of how we collect, use and store personal data.

The PCC reserves the right to decline any request for hire for any reason without the need to provide explanations or justifications for refusal.

It is the responsibility of the hirer to make sure that these General Terms and Conditions of Hire are understood. The hirer should seek clarification from the Church Centre Team if there is anything the hirer does not understand.

Services (other faiths)

As a place of Christian (Anglican) worship, we are not permitted to hire out church premises for religious services of other faiths. Christian groups not belonging to the trinitarian mainstream (e.g. members of Churches Together) are advised to contact the Vicar in the first instance.

Deposits, Cancellations and Payments

For one-off event hirers:

• A non-refundable hall hire deposit is required at the time of booking, payment of which constitutes acceptance of the General Terms and Conditions of Hire.
• Payment of the hall hire balance and refundable damage deposit is required no less than 14 days prior to date of hire.

The refundable damage deposit is not the limit of the hirer’s potential damage liability. The PCC acting reasonably shall be the sole judge of the damage/excess time/failure to comply with the General Terms and Conditions of Hire and the amount of payment required from the deposit or otherwise from the hirer. The damage deposit, if levied, will be refunded within 14 days of the event if no costs arise.

In the event of a cancellation for a one-off event hire, the following charges will apply:

• Less than 28 days’ notice: 50% of hire charge
• Less than 14 days’ notice: 100% of hire charge

If a replacement booking is secured, these charges will be reduced by half.

For regular hirers:

• Invoices will be issued in accordance with the Hire Agreement
• Charges are levied in increments of 15 minutes and are payable in arrears for the month past.
• Sessions cancelled with less than 24 hours notice will not be charged for, so long as not unduly frequent (defined as more than 1 in 4 periods of hire cancelled in any 3 months).

Regular hirers of the hall and Room 1 (Meeting Room) and (Room 2) Library of the North premises will be asked for a refundable key deposit and must abide by the conditions listed on the Key Deposit Receipt.

Payments

Please speak to the Church Centre Team for details of current hire rates.

Payments of charges and deposits will be specified in the hirer’s invoice.

We request payments be made by bank transfer:

Account name: Church of the Good Shepherd

Barclays Sort Code: 20-84-17

Account number: 80256692

As your reference please state the invoice number noted on your booking confirmation.

Alternatively, please make cheques payable to ‘The Church of the Good Shepherd‘ and send to the Church Treasurer, Church of the Good Shepherd, Queen Mary’s Avenue, Carshalton, Surrey, SM5 4NP. A separate cheque should be made out for the refundable damage deposit so that this can be returned to you.

Please note we cannot accept payments by credit card.

Behaviour and Conduct

The hirer is responsible for the control and conduct of proceedings in the hired premises and its immediate surroundings during the period of hire. The hirer must ensure that no disorderly or undesirable behaviour takes place, and that nobody makes unreasonable use of the hired premises or its facilities.

The Church site is in a residential area and the hirer must ensure that their use of the hired premises does not create excessive noise or otherwise cause a nuisance or annoyance to the local community.

The Driveway in front of church should not be obstructed and parked vehicles should not block access to the premises for emergency services.

Smoking or vaping is not permitted in any part of the premises or grounds and the hirer must ensure that everyone complies with this.

The hirer must arrange any licences relating to their intended use of the hired premises.

Alcohol may be served (in moderation) at events free of charge without a licence to persons aged eighteen and over.

The sale of alcohol is not permitted without an appropriate licence (Temporary Event Notice), which is the responsibility of the hirer and must be shown to the Church Centre Team prior to the event.

The hirer must ensure that there is no infringement of copyright and – in the case of music, film or video entertainment – and ensure that the requirements of the Performing Rights Society have been fulfilled.

Other People on the Premises

Good Shepherd buildings are busy spaces and offer shared use of toilets and kitchen/s unless otherwise specified in the hirer’s booking agreement.  It may be that the Hall, North room; Room 1 (Meeting Room), Room 2 (Library) and South rooms South 3 (Dividable room), South 4 (Parish Lounge) are let to different users.

The entrances to both the North and South buildings, and associated toilets, are to be considered a shared facility.

The inner toilets adjacent to the Hall and the kitchen are for the exclusive use of the Hall hirer. Hall users can lock themselves in if there is a safeguarding concern about not having exclusive use of the rest of the premises. The Hall door should not be left open during the hirer’s activity.

Hirers of the North rooms; Room 1 (Meeting Room) and Room 2 (Library) access these rooms via the Hall entrance lobby and corridor and may use the toilets in the outer lobby only. Hirers of these rooms do not have access to the kitchen when the Hall is in use by another group.

Hirers of the hall and north rooms should not attempt to enter the church – you may set off the alarm and attendance by volunteers to reset alarms may result in the forfeiture of the hirer’s deposit.

Hall and Room Facilities

Hirers of the South rooms; South 3 (Dividable room), South 4 (Parish Lounge) access the rooms via the South entrance lobby and may use the shared toilets in the lobby. The kitchen is considered a shared facility.

The hirer will be responsible for setting up the hall or room/s for their requirements and returning everything to its original location at the conclusion of their activity.

In the hall cupboards, there are at least 16 GoPak folding tables (adult height) which are approximately 180cm x 70cm, with 100+ folding chairs, all on trolleys. There are also approximately 6 smaller children’s height tables (yellow and red tops) and 30 small (red) stacking chairs.

The hirer must wipe down tables and chairs after use and return to the trolleys in the cupboards.

Chairs and tables of various sizes are available for use in the meeting rooms in both the North and South premises. The hirer must agree use with the Church Centre Team at the point booking.

Should any items be damaged during use please inform the Church Centre Team as soon as possible.

Kitchen Facilities

The kitchen/s are well equipped with tumblers (glass and plastic), crockery and cutlery.

There are pans and baking trays, serving dishes and a selection of utensils.

There are facilities for boiling water (please switch off after use), a microwave and two conventional ovens.

There is also a fridge and a freezer although we cannot guarantee how much space will be available for the hirer’s use.

The dishwashers are not available for use.

All equipment and items used must be cleaned, washed up and put back in the appropriate cupboards and drawers.

Cleaning

The premises is cleaned professionally several times a week to ensure a good basic level of cleanliness. However, as multiple users are in the premises between cleaning visits, each hirer needs to take responsibility for ensuring they leave the premises ready for the next user, bearing in mind that some groups might be lying on the floor.

For Hall hirers, a vacuum cleaner, floor sweeper, broom, dust-pan and brush, mop and bucket, disposable jay cloths and antibacterial surface spray are provided for the hirer’s use.

Please do not use tea towels for mopping up spills – paper towels and/or jay cloths are available for this purpose.

Decorations

Our General Terms and Conditions of Hire prohibit the use of blu-tac, Sellotape and other fixings on the walls but these may be used with care on the glass or woodwork (no drawing pins or staples).

In the hall, there are hooks attached to the top edge of some of the cupboard door frames and hirers are welcome to tie balloons etc. to these.

Hirers must not move any pins from the church noticeboards or pin anything onto the preschool display board in the hall.

All decorations must be removed at the end of the period of hire.

No posters may be displayed inside or outside the premises without prior approval from the Church Centre Team.

No flammable material, candles (except ordinary birthday cake candles) or other naked flames may be used in the hired premises.

The hirer must not interfere with any of the fixtures, fittings or equipment in the hired premises; and must seek prior approval for the use of any personal electrical equipment.

Bouncy Castles for Hall Hirers

Hirers are welcome to arrange their own bouncy castles, either inside or in the garden, so long as they are delivered and collected within the allocated time slot for your booking.

Music/Sound

Hirers are welcome to bring their own speaker(s) but we ask that the volume be at a level which will not cause disturbance to our neighbours, especially if the windows are open or the garden is being used. We do not offer the use of the sound system to external hirers.

Parking

There are about 20 car parking spaces in the church car park, however, as there may be various groups using different parts of the building at the same time, we cannot guarantee that these spaces will always be available for people attending the hirer’s event or session.

Parking is also free in local roads, though we ask that church visitors are considerate to our neighbours and do not block access to driveways.

Public Safety and Access

The PCC’s agents and any of the Emergency Services and duly authorised officers of the Local Authority may enter the hired premises at any time during the hire period.

The hirer must ensure, that at all times, the fire exits are operational and kept clear.

The hirer should ensure that he / she, and others present, are familiar with the fire exits and fire precautions in the hired premises. (Fire prevention and precaution notices are displayed in the Hall and Meeting Rooms).

The hirer must provide their own First Aid equipment.

Hirers must have a working mobile with them at all times for emergency use.

Dimensions and Capacity

The maximum permitted number of people allowed in the Hall is 120, in Room 1 (Meeting) is 20 and Room 2 (Library) is 15; and in the South Room 4 (Parish lounge) or South Room 3 (Dividable room) is 40. These numbers must not be exceeded in any circumstances.

Hall: 15.8m x 8.7m (120 people)

Garden: grass area approximately 12m x 5.5m

North Room 1 (Meeting room) 1: 5.2m x 6.0m (capacity 20 people)

North Room 2 (Library): 5.4m x 5.1m (capacity 15 people)

South 3 (dividable room): (capacity 40 people)

South 4 (parish lounge): (capacity 40 people)

Leaving the Premises

The hirer must vacate the hired premises by the agreed time and leave the premises in a clean and tidy condition.

The hirer must remove all rubbish and recycling from the premises and take it with them. The church bins, both inside and outside, are not for the use of hirers.

It is the hirers’ responsibility to ensure all toilets are flushed after hire.

All items of furniture and kitchen equipment that has been used should wiped down and cups, tumblers, crockery and cutlery must be washed up and returned to the drawers and cupboards where it was found.

All Hirer’s equipment must be removed by the hirer.  The hirer must switch off lights, close windows and ensure that the premises are secure.

When leaving the premises, all persons are required to leave in a quiet orderly manner, especially if the hire finishes in the evening.

Failure to comply with any of these conditions of use may result in the forfeiture of the hirer’s damage deposit, if levied.

Safeguarding

The hirer is required to ensure that children and vulnerable adults are protected at all times, by taking all reasonable steps to prevent injury, loss or damage occurring.  The PCC has a Policy for Safeguarding Children, Young People and Vulnerable Adults. Your booking agreement is conditional upon you complying with it unless you already have an equivalent policy of your own.

Indemnity and Insurance

The PCC will not be responsible for injury or accident to any person or for the loss, theft or damage to property belonging to the hirer or any person attending the hired premises.

The Hirer shall indemnify the PCC from and against any loss, damage or theft of any property, or any other demands, actions, proceedings, losses, damages, costs, expenses, claims and liability from any person, howsoever caused or arising from their use of the premises, or their breach of the General Terms and Conditions, whether directly or indirectly in any manner whatsoever.

The PCC will hold the hirer responsible for the costs of any necessary repairs or additional cleaning to the hired premises arising from his / her use, including any consequential losses should the premises be unusable as a result.

Regular hirers shall provide a copy of their public liability insurance to the Church Centre Team at the outset of the hiring, and at each renewal of the insurance thereafter.

Termination of Use

If the hirer does not comply with any of the above General Terms and Conditions of Hire, or any other reasonable instructions or requests, the PCC can exclude the hirer or any person from the hired premises until he / she does comply, but this will not relieve the hirer from any obligation under these conditions.

The hirer must only use the hired premises for the purpose to which the PCC has agreed; and the PCC reserves the right to immediately terminate the hirer’s booking without payment of compensation if it is believed that the hirer’s use maybe improper, unseemly, undesirable or not as described on the booking information issued by the Church Centre Team.

The PCC may cancel a booking before or during a period of hire either because in the PCC’s opinion the Hall or any other rooms have become unsafe for use, or because it is required for the use of an Election or other official or Church requirement. In such an event, the PCC will refund all hire payments made to it, but this will be the limit of the PCC’s liability to the hirer.

Amendments to General Terms and Conditions of Hire

These terms and conditions may be revised, amended or changed by the PCC from time to time without prior notification.

Last updated November 2022.