Standard Terms and Conditions of Hire

THE HIRER agrees that all bookings will be treated by the Church Representatives as provisional and the Hirer shall have no rights pursuant to the Hire Agreement until the signed Hire Agreement is received from the Hirer and the appropriate deposit has been paid. The Church Representatives reserve the right to cancel provisional bookings at any time for any reason without notice.
THE HIRER shall pay the hire fees in advance as directed. Such payment shall only be refundable to the Hirer in the event of a Church Representative cancelling the booking. The Church Representatives reserve the right to change or cancel any booking due to Church requirements giving at least 48 hours’ notice or if exceptional unforeseen circumstances arise giving as much notice as possible.
IF THE HIRER wishes to cancel the booking and the Church Representatives are unable to arrange a replacement booking, the Church Representatives may at their absolute discretion refund the fees but shall be under no obligation to do so and any refunded fees will not normally include any non-refundable booking deposit.
THE HIRER shall ensure that the Rules governing the use of the premises are complied with and any additional or special instructions or conditions imposed by the Church Representatives.
THE HIRER shall, during the period of hiring, be responsible for supervision and security of the premises, protection of the fabric and contents from damage, and the behaviour of all persons using the premises, including proper supervision of car parking arrangements (if any) so as to avoid obstruction of the highway.
THE HIRER shall be responsible for obtaining any local authority or other licenses necessary in connection with the booking, other than those (if any) already held by the Church Representatives.
THE HIRER shall be responsible for making adequate arrangements to insure against any third party claims which may lay against the Hirer or his/her organisation whilst using the premises. If information about insurers who may be able to provide appropriate cover is provided by the Church Representatives on request this does not constitute advice or a recommendation of any kind.
THE HIRER shall be responsible for the observance of all regulations affecting the premises imposed by the Licensing Justices, the Fire Authority and the Local Authority or otherwise.
THE HIRER shall not sublet or use the premises for any unlawful purpose or in any unlawful way or do anything or bring onto the premises anything which may endanger the premises, their users, or any insurance policies relating thereto.
THE HIRER shall indemnify the Church Representatives in respect of the cost of repair of any damage done to any part of the premises including the curtilage thereof or the contents of the building during, or as a result of, a booking and in respect of any liability to third parties or otherwise arising out of the use of the premises pursuant to the booking. The cost of repair may be deducted by the Church Representatives from any deposit taken for this purpose but this does not constitute a limitation of liability if the cost of repair exceeds the deposit amount, in which case the Hirer will be liable for the excess cost within 14 days of notification.
THE HIRER shall be responsible for ensuring that no nuisance, including excessive levels of noise, shall be caused during the occupancy of the premises to any other occupant or to an adjoining or neighbouring property and shall indemnify the Church Representatives in respect of all claims whatsoever arising out of the hire.
THE HIRER shall, if selling goods on the premises, comply with all relevant fair trading laws and any local code of practice issued in connection with such sales.
THE HIRER acknowledges that no tenancy is intended to be created between the Church Representatives and the Hirer and no relationship of landlord and tenant exists between them.
THE HIRER is reminded that they are responsible for any accident or injury arising out of the activity for which they have hired the premises. It is the responsibility of the Hirer to ensure that the premises are safe for the purpose for which they intend to use them. The Hirer must, in the event of an accident, as soon as possible provide the information requested in the Accident Form to the Church Representatives who will complete the accident book.
THE HIRER shall abide by the St Katharine Cree Safeguarding Policy, and by signing the hire agreement the Hirer acknowledges that this has been read and that all concerns relating to abuse of a vulnerable person will be reported to the relevant statutory authority.
THE HIRER enters into this Hire Agreement by signing the Agreement, or by paying any invoice arising from the Agreement or by using the premises as specified in the Agreement, so long as the Hirer has been issued with the Hire Agreement at that point.

USE OF ST KATHARINE CREE CHURCH (THE “RULES”)

The Guild Church of St Katharine Cree has agreed to your use of the premises as specified in your hire agreement. In addition to the Terms and Conditions, your use of the premises is subject to the following rules as well as any additional guidance or conditions given to you by the Church Representatives whether in writing or verbally at any time.

1. Responsible Person

As the Hirer you agree to designate a responsible person(s) present during the hire to be in charge of ensuring that the Rules are adhered to. No booking may commence unless the Church Representatives have received confirmation of the name, position/role, and contact telephone number of the responsible person(s) who must be present throughout the booking.

In the case of large events, the Church Representatives may direct the Hirer to nominate a Fire Marshall, Stewards, and First Aiders for the event.

2. Access

a) You may enter the premises up to 15 minutes before your booking to set up, which we allow free of charge. If you require more time before your event, this must be arranged with the Church Representatives and will incur a hire charge.

b) Please oversee the arrival of your group and if applicable close the external doors as soon as everyone from your group is present. After your booking, you must check that all doors are locked/bolted as appropriate, and that no one is left in the premises if you are locking up the building.

c) Access to clear away after use of the room is allowed for up to 15 minutes free of charge. If you think you will require more time after your event, your hire agreement needs to include that time. If you stay longer than 15 minutes without prior agreement after your hire period ends, you are liable to pay for any additional time at the relevant applicable hire rate charged by the hour plus an excess stay administration charge of £25. (For example, exceeding your agreed hire period by 40 minutes will result in a fee of one hour’s hire plus £25).

d) Additional rules apply to Keyholders which are found in the separate Keyholder Agreement. Each set of keys issued must only be used by the person(s) who has/have registered as key holder(s) and signed a Keyholder Agreement.

3. Premises

a) You are hiring only the space specified in your hiring agreement. Access to other areas is not permitted. You are responsible for supplying any equipment you require, for ensuring that it is safe, and for removing it afterwards.

b) You must ensure that the integrity and security of the building and its contents is preserved, and its ecclesiastical character is respected at all times. If you are in doubt, please check with the Church Representatives. Excluded activities include but are not limited to Gambling*, Fortune telling, Yoga, Martial arts, Worship of another religion (that includes the use of shrines, joss-sticks, religious dance, prayers of another religion or priests of another religion), Party political activities, alternative therapies (unless prior approval is sought from the Church Representatives). You may not ordinarily move or attach anything to anything of a specifically liturgical character (e.g. the altar).

*Small raffles and tombolas, which are not required to be registered under the Lotteries & Amusements Act of 1976, may be permitted if prior approval is given by the Church Representatives. As stated in section 3 of the Act of 1976, lotteries that do not need to be registered, must obey the following criteria:

● proceeds must be devoted to purposes other than private gain,

● tickets can only be sold on the premises and during the event,

● no more than £250 can be spent on prizes,

● No money prizes can be awarded.

c) The main pipe organ may only be played if this has been authorised by the Church Representatives in advance and included in your hire agreement, and must only be played by organists of professional standard due to its sensitive historic nature.

d) You must leave the Church/Church Hall, toilets, kitchen and any other facilities used clean and tidy in the condition you found them, with all furniture and other fittings returned to their usual positions, and all lights and heaters turned off, unless otherwise advised. You may not attach anything to the walls or other surfaces of any part of the building without prior permission from a Church Representative. This includes the use of temporary fixings (e.g. Blu-tac, sellotape). If you are found to have damaged the fabric of the building, or left the facilities in a dirty or untidy condition then you are liable to have future bookings cancelled without notice or refund, and are liable for any costs incurred by the Church Representatives in rectifying the condition (for example, the costs of additional professional cleaning, or staff time moving furniture).

e) For longer term users, a small amount of storage may be possible at additional cost on request to the Church Representatives. If this has been provided, all materials must be put away at the end of each period of use, contained entirely within the designated storage area, and are stored at your own risk.

f) All rubbish and recycling should be placed in the appropriate bins, or according to any specific instruction from the Church Representatives.

g) You must ensure that fire safety procedures as detailed in the Hire Pack are understood and, in case of an emergency, the responsible person(s) must ensure that they are followed and the building(s) evacuated safely; in particular:

all fire exits must be kept clear and in the Church Hall they must be unlocked;
the responsible person must know where the fire exits and fire extinguishers are and how to use them;
at the start of a session those present must be told of the location of the fire exits;
no naked lights are allowed without specific permission of the Church Representatives;
maximum numbers attending must not exceed:
1. Church: 300
2. Hall: 70
3. Lower Hall: 10

4. Safeguarding

You must ensure that any children or adults at risk are adequately supervised and are only attended one to one by their parents or others with appropriate qualifications and checks. You may be asked for evidence of these qualifications and checks by the Church Representatives. You must comply with the Church’s Safeguarding Policy which has been provided and the Diocesan Safeguarding Policy, which can be found on the Diocese of London website.

5. Other details

a) Please let us know of any problems, queries or if anything unusual has happened. Details of any accidents or damage must be notified to us at the earliest opportunity.

b) The Representatives should be able to help with any requirements and can be contacted at office@stkatharinecree.org or telephone number 020 4570 7010.

c) In an emergency, it may be possible to contact Rev’d Josh Harris on 07942 258297.

Church Representatives

The Guild Church Council of St Katharine Cree may be represented for the purposes of hire by any of:

Crystal Green
Rev’d Josh Harris
Kitty Lyons

The Church Representatives may be contacted at:

St Katharine Cree Church, 86 Leadenhall Street, London, EC3A 3BP
office@stkatharinecree.org
020 4570 7010