IONA VILLAGE HALL

Purpose-built hall at the heart of the community

WT Architecture have worked alongside the community since 2012 to deliver a village hall that can fulfil several functions whilst retaining its place at the heart of community island life. The new Village Hall replaces a much-loved but deteriorating single space hall built by islanders in 1928. In winter there are no other public spaces to come together in, so the new Hall needed to feel welcoming to those dropping in for contact where social isolation can be acute. Materials have been carefully selected to complement the surrounding historic context; blue zinc roofs echoing the slate of nearby buildings, larch clad block walls reflecting the timber and masonry buildings of the village, and a series of stone walls help to root the Hall into the sloping ground. Constructed in pink granite donated from Tormore quarry at Fionnphort and slate donated by the community on Luing, the stone walls provide the building with not only a sense of belonging in the landscape but serve as a testament to community collaboration and endeavour, made possible by the generosity of fellow islanders.