Villagers flocked to the centre of St Boswells last week to see the unveiling of the newly refurbished village hall.
A huge fundraising effort has enabled substantial works to be carried out on the hall, including the creation of a new internal staircase, new foyer, toilets and installation of insulation.This has come at the cost of around £350,000.
The refurbished hall was opened by village stalwarts Christine and Roy Lawrie.
They praised the efforts of all those involved in the fundraising campaign and said they hoped the hall would now be used by more people and groups, both from within the community and from those further afield.
Village hall committee chairman Robin Wild told The Southern: “We’ve been very lucky as the fundraising committee had several specific professional people who have committed so much of their professional knowledge and expertise to the project and we’d never have managed without their particular input.”
Mr Wild added that a further £62,000 is required to put the finishing touches to the refurbishment.
This includes a new floor in the main hall, stage lighting and audio equipment and curtains for the stage and hall.
Half of the overall project funds have come from the Climate Challenge Fund, with the remainder coming from other funds, organisations and individuals.
Nigel Pollock, chairman of the hall appeal committee praised the main contractors for their efforts.
He told the assembled audience on Thursday night: “Murray and Burrell performed an extraordinary job.
“I was here the first day and there was probably 20 people in here, all with jobs to do, and they have been an incredibly good team and have finished on time and in budget.”
Mr Pollock added: “The refurbishment sub committee have made an enormous contribution to this project and without their professional expertise and the huge amount of time they have put in to it the prospect of securing the grant from the Climate Challenge Fund would have been very slim.”