Horsham’s Drill Hall could be handed over to Royal British Legion to run

Horsham’s Drill Hall could be handed over the town’s branch of the Royal British Legion to run.
Pictured in early 2020, Local groups including the regiment, Talking News Horsham harmony choir and  Horsham Community Choir, at the drill Hall, Horsham. Pic Steve RobardsPictured in early 2020, Local groups including the regiment, Talking News Horsham harmony choir and  Horsham Community Choir, at the drill Hall, Horsham. Pic Steve Robards
Pictured in early 2020, Local groups including the regiment, Talking News Horsham harmony choir and Horsham Community Choir, at the drill Hall, Horsham. Pic Steve Robards

Original proposals by Horsham District Council for affordable flats on the ex-Army hall site in Denne Road provoked a storm of opposition in early 2020.

The huge swell of support for it to be retained for community use now appears to have paid off.

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Next week (Thursday October 7), council cabinet members will discuss proposals and a business case from the Horsham branch of the RBL for it to lease and take overall control of the activities and operations of the Drill Hall in Denne Road.

Drill Hall, Denne Road, Horsham. Pic Steve Robards SR20012202 SUS-200122-150127001Drill Hall, Denne Road, Horsham. Pic Steve Robards SR20012202 SUS-200122-150127001
Drill Hall, Denne Road, Horsham. Pic Steve Robards SR20012202 SUS-200122-150127001

If the proposal is approved, the RBL would use the hall as its headquarters, as a social space for its members and as an ongoing community facility for the benefit of residents and visitors.

The Horsham Branch will also invite all Armed Forces charities, Cadet bodies and supporting organisations to benefit from the community facility.

It is planned that the Horsham Branch will establish a Drill Hall Standing Committee for the ongoing management and marketing of the Drill Hall facility.

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Zӓäl Rustom, Horsham branch chairman of the Royal British Legion, said: “This is a great opportunity to bring communities together and safeguard the future of an historically significant building that has touched the hearts of many. Whilst establishing a new headquarters for the Horsham Branch we want to create a home for the wider armed forces community and deliver on the Legion’s ‘four pillars’ of Welfare, Representation, Remembrance and Comradeship.

“The project is not all military; from the start we want to see strong community use across all ages and all walks of life. Furthermore, we are keen for everyone in Horsham to have a sense of ownership.

“I am please with the engagement and support we have received from Horsham District Council’s team. I genuinely feel we are all working together to make this a success.”

Roger Noel, HDC’s cabinet member for leisure and culture, said: “I am pleased that we are now in a position to give full consideration to the Horsham Branch of the Royal British Legion’s proposal regarding the ongoing ownership and management of the Drill Hall.

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“If the proposals are accepted, they will see the future of the Drill Hall safeguarded and kept as a key community facility for their own use, that of our various Armed Forces communities, and for the broader general public.”

“The proposal aims to retain the Drill Hall as the community asset for which it was originally intended and delivers on the promises made by the Council when it signed the Armed Forces Covenant in 2014.”

Tony Hogben, cabinet member for Horsham town centre, added: “This is potentially really good news for the ongoing provision of community facilities in the heart of Horsham town Centre.

“The swell of support for the town centre’s Drill Hall was very evident back in 2020 when the council first undertook an independent review into community facilities for the Denne Ward.

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“This proposal would create a home for Horsham’s various military and service organisations and would grow and develop the role of the Drill Hall for the wider local community.”

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