The King George V Hall and Fields (KGV) provides a popular and important recreational facility for residents, with a village hall and 33 acres of open land in the heart of the village, including sports pitches, playgrounds, woodland and open grassland.
The KGV Hall is home to a pre-school as well as many different clubs and activities, and is the regular meeting place for the Parish Council.
The KGV Fields has two playgrounds (one for toddlers and young children and one for older children) as well as rugby and football pitches and an artificial grass court, well-used by sports clubs and also available for private hire.
To find out more, and to book facilities, visit the KGV website.
Historical background
Between 1935 and 1938, Effingham residents raised £4,000 (a significant amount of money at the time) in order to purchase 33 acres of land for village playing fields – this is the area now known as the King George V Playing Fields. The purchase was assisted by funding from the King George V Memorial Fund, and ‘Fields in Trust’, the successor organization, still takes an interest in the Effingham KGV today.
After the Second World War, in 1947 the purchasing committee transferred the KGV land to Effingham Parish Council, to be held in trust for the benefit of the residents of Effingham in perpetuity. In 1951 the Parish Council dedicated the KGV Fields as a Charity (now EVRT). The KGV Hall was built in 1966, with sports changing rooms and clubrooms as well as a hall for general use.
You can read more about the early history of the KGV here.
Governance and Funding
The KGV is owned and managed by Effingham Village Recreation Trust (EVRT), a registered charity (number 305018). Effingham Parish Council is the Sole Trustee of the charity, holding the freehold of the land, and bearing responsibility under charity law for ensuring the facilities are managed in accordance with the objects of the charity. The Trustee appoints volunteers to an Executive Board which guides the day-to-day operations of the KGV, and initiates and implements projects to enhance and maintain the facilities.
The Parish Council’s role as Trustee is entirely separate from the Council’s role as a tier of local government. When acting as Sole Trustee the Council operates in compliance with the Charities Act 2011, whereas when acting as a tier of local government it operates in compliance with the Local Government Act 1972. Persons elected to the Council (i.e. Councillors) automatically become members of the Trustee but are not individually trustees.
The Trustee, volunteers and professional support staff work together to fulfil the charitable mission of EVRT, which is:
‘for the public benefit, to provide or assist in the provision, support and or maintenance of facilities for recreation and other leisure-time occupation for the inhabitants of the area of benefit, in particular through the provision of a village hall and recreation grounds’.
Full details of the EVRT Charity are available on the website for the King George V Hall and Fields, and on the Charity Commission website EVRT charity 305018. The Trustee can be contacted by email to theTrustee@evrt.org.uk or in writing to ‘The Trustee, c/o King George V Hall, Browns Lane, Effingham, Surrey, KT24 5ND.’
The Parish Council as Local Authority provides funding to EVRT to pay for the cost of providing the KGV facilities which are free for public use, such as the playgrounds and accessible open fields, and a share of the cost of administration and providing a village hall for community use. The rest of the funding is paid by the various user groups including sports clubs, the pre-school, and other community clubs and activities.
