My Story

My name is Vici Ladeji, and I am the founder of Your Community Space.

As a volunteer, I have been a trustee for a Community Centre, Farmer’s Market and Community Nursery.

I have spent 25 years as an event manager and a volunteer collectively.

I am aware of the challenges facing the trustees of community buildings, which is why I set up Your Community Space.  After spending 25 years in community and event management, I recognised that there was no single place available online where people could go to search for and hire a community building or to find out about the services and activities provided.

I have seen firsthand how using online methods effectively can transform the fortune of charities and voluntary organisations.

Leeswood Community Centre sent out an SOS to the village, as the Community Centre was in danger of closing due to a lack of funds.

Once on the committee, I was instrumental in setting up their Facebook page to engage with the local community and to learn what they would like from their community centre.

As a result of the engagement, the community expressed that they would like to reinstate the Leeswood Carnival.  A sub-committee was formed to organise the carnival, and it is now a thriving event and a firm fixture for the village.  The community centre was utilised for fundraisers for the carnival.

The result is now a busy bustling centre, providing activities for member groups, fundraisers and private hire for locals.

Your Community Space is a powerful tool to help make life easier and to reduce the workload of managing your hall.

The website provides a way to help both the trustees, and the public.

We collate the relevant information to help you find advice for important everyday issues such as health and safety, fire risk assessments, marketing, grants, fundraising, training, compliance, social media, accessibility, maintenance and governance, to name a few.  Currently, your valuable time and effort is spent having to search many different places to find out what is available.

Have you ever heard about a grant? … However, it’s too late to apply.

Perhaps you are paying 20% VAT on utilities, when in fact you should be entitled to pay 5%.  Also, if you have overpaid VAT, you can claim a backdated refund. If you would like us to put you in touch with one of our partners who can carry out an energy audit for you, then it is completely free of charge. Please contact.

Are you claiming gift aid – a 25% top up on your fundraising from the Government? Local Giving can manage gift aid for you, which increases the funds that you raise by 25% from the government. That is an extra 25p for each £1 raised!  Local Giving helps local charities and community groups to connect with people, fundraise online and take control of their future. If you would like more information, contact.

Did you know that there are also grants and low interest loans available towards the cost of solar panels and LED lighting, and a cold weather grant for some community buildings?  The benefits for your volunteers and hall could range from not having to change the light fittings so often, to reducing your electricity costs, and even generating an income for your hall.

Another of our partners can help you find a sponsor to install a vital defibrillator, which would truly make your hall the heart of the community.

This is a sample of the forum that you can access, as a member of Your Community Space.  In addition to a host of other benefits, please see our benefits page.

Your Community Space also helps the public who are looking for a hall to hire, or an activity to attend by making it much easier for them to search.

Currently, there is no other option other than to trawl through individual websites which don’t always have the information that they need such as size, availability, location facilities or an event calendar, when trying to find a local space or activity.

Even if you have your own website, you are still competing with thousands of other websites to be seen. Being part of one large website vastly increases your exposure.  That is why websites such as Rightmove, Just Eat, Hotels.com and Expedia have become so successful in recent years.  People want to be able to find information in one convenient place.

Your Community Space has worked with the trustees of community buildings to devise a website that helps you to manage practical everyday issues in an easy to use format.

• Our aim is to help halls be busier, and easier to manage.
• Make finding information to help manage your hall easier.
• Encourage the community to make the best use of their halls.
• Help local people become more involved with activities and events.
• Help halls increase their bookings and generate more revenue.

To Join Your Community Space is free. We are confident that you will immediately see the benefits of becoming a member. If you are you worried about the sustainability of your hall, and find that managing your hall takes up too much of your time, then Your Community Space can help you.

I look forward to seeing you online!