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Falkirk Community Trust – Reopening after lockdown
06 Oct 2020
Callendar House is Good to Go
Since reopening Grangemouth Golf Course on 28 May, Falkirk Community Trust has continued to take a careful and phased approach to reopening facilities, in line with health and safety tests with Falkirk Council and ensuring that we have safety measures in place for staff and customers alike.
The Trust is delighted to see so many swimmers, health & fitness attendees, library users and Callendar House visitors taking advantage of the online booking system and enjoying the facilities again. Lots of positive feedback has been received from individuals and clubs, which is a testament to the hard work of Falkirk Community Trust staff.
After several months of closure, Callendar House reopened to the public on 10 September. The House was subject to extensive safety testing following closure and we also ensured that we met the requirements of Visit Scotland’s ‘Good to Go’ accreditation to further assure visitors that it’s safe to visit. A new one-way system is in place, taking visitors around the permanent exhibitions and into the Georgian Kitchen, where our costumed interpreters will be elaborating on the history of the house at a safe distance.
Adhering to the Scottish Government’s Test and Protect scheme, all visits are pre-booked to control visitor numbers and obtain contact details. We have also introduced three relaxed entry times per week where visitor numbers are reduced even further so that those with additional needs can fully enjoy their visit.
The Tearoom remains closed at present, although will be reopening in October with a reduced menu and a new ‘Bake Away’ takeaway service so visitors can enjoy home baking and the great outdoors at the same time.
Customer feedback thus far has been extremely positive with comments such as:
“Clear, open areas. Well marked out and very interesting information.”
“The Georgian Kitchen and costumed interpreter were great, as well as whole experience.”
“Feel very safe whilst in the house and the one-way system is easy to follow.”
“Reduced numbers in the house made us feel safe and gave us plenty of time to enjoy our visit.”
Libraries
We have also been gradually reopening our Libraries and are very happy that all libraries have reopened for our new, appointment-based Click & Collect service. Customers can either tell us the type of books that they like and we choose the titles, or they can request specific items from the library catalogue. Once items are ready for collection, the customer makes an appointment to collect. Customer feedback has been very encouraging:
“I got some library books today! Excellent service from @LibFalkirk - browsed the catalogue online, requested books, picked a delivery slot, socially distanced and quick collection. So simple and so efficient. Delighted to be able to use and support my local library again!”
“Loving the click and collect services. Well done.”
“Dropped off books and picked up new ones last week at Falkirk, I was very impressed with the set up. I was in and out in a couple of minutes.”
Health and Fitness
We have been gradually reopening Health and Fitness venues after extensive building and safety checks. First to open was Grangemouth Stadium on 7 September, followed by the Mariner Centre and Stenhousemuir Health and Fitness on 14 September. A new online booking system for swim and gym sessions and also fitness classes has been developed, in order to comply with the Scottish Government’s Test and Protect scheme. Outdoor classes at Grangemouth Stadium have also been introduced. Our customers have been very eager to get back, as demonstrated by their enthusiastic feedback:
“Great to be back, everyone’s doing a brilliant job at both Stenhousemuir and Mariner.”
“Well done Falkirk Fitness – first visit to the Mariner … and it was stress-free and so straightforward. Lovely girl on the door with a nice welcome and lovely way of explaining the procedures, and of course great to be back in the gym.”
“Back at Stenhousemuir gym for the first time in 6 months. Felt very safe due to the COVID measures in place.”
“Thanks for excellent health & safety procedures in Stenhousemuir gym. Felt safe and enjoyed a great class.”
Parks
Our parks proved essential places for local people to enjoy getting out and about during lockdown. The Helix - Home of the Kelpies, Callendar Park, Muiravonside Country Park (including Newparks Farm) and Kinneil Estate have continued to reopen facilities, including their all-important toilets, over the past weeks as visitors begin to travel from further afield. Feedback has been very positive:
“This park is a godsend, it’s been our happy place during lockdown, a place to escape” – from a regular visitor to Muiravonside Country Park.
“The team have kept this place looking fantastic, it lifts my heart looking out the window” – from a resident of the high flats by Callendar Park.
“This is great for the kids, I don’t know what we’d do to keep them entertained otherwise” – visitor to the play trail at Callendar Park.
“The Helix Park did not seem overcrowded at any stage during my visit and there were no problems regarding social distancing. A really lovely place to spend an hour or so.” – weekend visitor to the Helix Park.
Performing Arts Venues Relief Fund
Falkirk Community Trust is delighted to announce that Falkirk Town Hall (FTH Theatre), has received a total of £73,690 from the open call for applications to the Scottish Government’s Performing Arts Venues Relief Fund through Creative Scotland.
The fund was designed to support performing arts venues that cannot yet re-open due to the ongoing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, and with FTH Theatre remaining closed with no date yet set for reopening this is a vital lifeline.
Located in the heart of Falkirk town centre, prior to closure in March, this lively venue promotes a varied and exciting year round programme, as well as playing host to many community groups enabling them to perform on a stage in this 580 seater auditorium.
It is essential that the venue remains a centre for cultural activity in the Falkirk Council area and The Performing Arts Venues Relief Fund will enable FTH Theatre to:
• re-connect with audiences through imaginative and engaging approaches over the coming months whilst the Trust remains unable to present live theatre performances;
• assist in maintaining the venue’s financial viability and provide opportunities for programming, technical and front of house staff to continue to be supporting creative production;
• establish and implement operating procedures for re-opening FTH Theatre when it is safe and appropriate to do so.
Lesley O’Hare, Culture & Libraries Manager said “We are absolutely thrilled to have received this funding, which comes at a vital time as ongoing restrictions mean we are still unable to fully reopen the theatre. We will use the funding to find new ways of animating the physical space as well as further developing online engagement to ensure continued connectivity with both audiences and the theatre sector. We plan to work with theatre companies and makers to provide residency/rehearsal space for them to develop new work and test ideas and concepts with local audiences.”
Iain Munro, CEO, Creative Scotland said: “Despite the ongoing, detrimental impact that the Covid-19 pandemic is having on Scotland’s performing arts venues, and on culture as a whole, it is positive that we can offer some funding to help venues navigate these extremely challenging times. I’m also encouraged to see that this funding will help venues across many different parts of Scotland where they form such an important part of the cultural life of local communities.”
Falkirk Town Hall is amongst 59 venues across Scotland sharing a total of £4.74million from the Scottish Government’s Performing Arts Venues Relief Fund’s £5million open call. A full list of all 59 venues can be found on the Creative Scotland website.
Jude Henderson, Director of the Federation of Scottish Theatre (FST) said: “We welcome the announcement of these emergency awards to performing arts venues across the country. The funds will help to support the vital work they do in serving communities, providing employment and showcasing Scotland's world class theatre and dance offer, much of which is created by our members.”
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