During the pandemic Heswall Hall has been working hard to reopen with brand new facilities and a renewed sense of confidence.

A programme of refurbishment aims to make the Hall a go-to Wirral venue which will attract visitors from beyond the immediate area, and partnerships with Blind Pig bar and Peninsula Catering were forged to provide first class food and drink for guests both regular and new.

A reopening date of June 21 was fixed.

But today the trustees announced that this date won't be met, saying:

"Heswall Hall Community Trust is making a major investment to improve the facilities at Heswall Hall.

"Contractors have been hard at work for some time on our substantial refurbishment programme.

"A new sound and lighting system has been installed and we have upgraded our facilities to include the most up to date fire and health and safety provisions.

"We had planned to open on June 21st but the scale of the works and a combination of delays in obtaining equipment means that our doors will now not open until July.

"We understand how disappointing this delay is to our regular users as well as to the wider Heswall community and we are really sorry.

"However, we hope this interlude will mean that when Heswall Hall does reopen all current lockdown restrictions will have been lifted, allowing us once again to operate fully as we would wish - at the heart of our community."

In 2011 Heswall Hall became the first Community Hall in Wirral to be transferred from local authority control to that of a Community Trust.

A decade later, it is an entirely self-funding - and sorely missed - focal point where young and old from the Heswall district can gather for all manner of reasons.

From the off, the Trust set about providing entertainment, support and activities for all on a regular basis in the daytime and evenings, including a pre-school playgroup, lunch club, tea dances and movie screenings. These have been followed by events like The Big Room, with live bands, and a monthly Comedy Club. A Memory Lane Afternoon Club was also established, set in a dementia-friendly environment.

On top of all this, the Hall is actively marketed as an excellent venue for parties, weddings and business meetings, and its reopening will be great news for the Trust and the community.