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A Brief History of the Trust

The Titchfield Village Trust came into being in June 1968 when a steering committee was formed to discuss the Draft Titchfield Village Plan which had been prepared by Hampshire County Council, who were at that time the planning authority.

Membership cost just twelve and a half pence (an old half crown to those of you who remember money before 1971)

During the first 21 years of its life it has been central in steering all kinds of village projects; along with objecting to others put forward by various statutory bodies.

 In 1968 The Trust did try to save the the Old Market Hall built in 1612. It had been moved from the Square to the rear of the Queens Head in about 1810 but severe cost restraints meant we were unable to mount a rescue for what had become a derelict shell. The newly created Weald and Downland Museum at Singleton came to the rescue however and the superbly refurbished Hall can be viewed at the museum.

 In many instances it has supported projects such as the development of Chapel side in East Street,  The Village Gate flats on Southampton Hill, The Old Gas Works development in what is now Frog Lane but was then called Castle Street.

The Trust has made a contribution to making sure the development fits in with the surrounding buildings and adds to rather than takes away from the village landscape. The Trust is not there to preserve the village in aspic but rather to make sure it continues as a viable and pleasant place to live. In order to achieve that  that we believe housing, shops, and businesses all have there place with the community.

Traffic has always been of concern since the Trust came into being, it still is. During the 1970's the Trust pushed for and were successful in getting a by pass to the East thus reducing considerably the traffic that previously had to come through the village as the main road from Southampton to Gosport. Since then various traffic calming measures, along with parking provision have been advocated by the Trust and in many cases acted upon.

In 1987 and 1988 the Trust provided funds and support for the village to enter the Hampshire Best Kept Village competition and won it on both occasions. The plaques can be seen on the front of the Parish Rooms. To commemorate the wins The Trust purchased a clock which was presented to the village and can be seen on the house next to the  Evangelical Church.

If you are interested in the formation of the Trust a book is available free of charge which looks in far more detail at it's first 21 years. Contact the chairman.

We are there for the benefit of Titchfield as a whole, and as you will see from our more recent projects continue to be.

In 2018 we will be celebrating 50 years as an organisation that has done much to make living in the village more than just a pleasure and has helped ensure that Titchfield can look to the future with confidence as well as helping it celebrate a very long and well preserved past.

Titchfield History

TITCHFIELD PARISH ROOM CELEBRATES ANNIVERSARY

2nd December 2017 

The Titchfield Parish Room (TPR) charity was set up to run the day to day activities of the Village Hall and has a maintenance and repair lease from the Portsmouth Diocese until 31st May 2024.

The Titchfield Village Trust (TVT) and Parish Room charities have merged into a new CIO Charity called the Titchfield Village Trust and has a new Charity No. 1184545.   The reason for this merger is specifically to ensure that the facility continues to function for at least the next 50 years, in the manner that the providers of the Building bequeathed to the Titchfield Village in 1890.  This requires a new lease with the Portsmouth Diocese and to raise a LOT of money to upgrade the building, which is very tired inside, plus the roof needs upgrading after 130 years. This is a major undertaking not just to raise the money, but also to plan and upgrade the Building and to ensure a management structure that will last the next 50 years.   The previous TPR charity only had 4 people to manage the charity and this was sufficient only to maintain the current status quo, it was not enough for this major undertaking.  Fortunately the TVT who have been in existence for over 50 years were very keen to take on this formidable undertaking.

The current and future lease(s) stipulate that the Village Hall is for use of the inhabitants of the Parish of Titchfield without distinction of political, religious or other opinions, including use for meetings, lectures and classes and for other forms of recreation and leisure-time occupation with the object of improving the conditions of life for the said inhabitants

 

In the Booking page you can find out what activities are occurring; many regular ones are booked well into the future.

The Prices were updated on 1st July 2020 and can be found in the “Charges” page.  There are a number of discounts available for regular users and for charities.

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