A cultural hub in the Wylye Valley is celebrating winning a prestigious competition, helping it to meet its green energy targets.

Excitement at Langford Village Hall mounted as the six lucky winners of the highly prized Westmill Solar Co-operative grants were announced.

“We are absolutely delighted to be selected,” said Jo Broad, chair of the village hall’s trustees. “This is the first step towards making the hall energy efficient, helping us to reach our net-zero carbon emissions target.”

The Westmill grant, worth £5000, will kick-start urgently needed improvements to the building, replacing draughty doors and installing cavity wall insulation.

William Graham, the hall’s treasurer said: "These measures will significantly reduce heating bills and carbon emissions."

The Langford trustees have already started fundraising for the next big step in their plans: replacing the roof of the hall, which is over a hundred years old and has no insulation. Beyond that, the hall hopes to insulate under the floor and add solar panels and an air-source heat pump to meet its net-zero carbon dioxide emissions target by 2035.

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Langford Parish Hall, the home of the literary group, the  'Wylye Valley Writers' and the Acoustic Cafe, hosts a wide range of social, cultural, and sporting activities. It’s available for hire by individuals, organisations, and businesses. wylyevalleywriters.com

Westmill Solar Co-operative runs a large solar farm in Watchfield, north Wiltshire. The cooperative donates a portion of the surplus generated by the farm to specially selected energy-saving initiatives.