The Use of The Ham

Jun 18, 2020 | Policy & Procedure

Hiring The Ham

The Ham is a big green space by the river, surrounded by trees, and with a fantastic view of the Dart. Residents and visitors alike enjoy to walk (with and without dogs), to sit on the benches and take in the view, to have a picnic, to let the kids play in the playground. There is a car park owned and run by the Parish Council with all profits going back in to help pay for community projects such as maintaining and improving the Ham. There is also a toilet block.

Because of its location, the Parish Council receives a number of enquiries a year to hire out The Ham for bookings.  This is permitted subject to the Parish Council’s ‘Use of the Ham’ policy.

If you are interested in hiring The Ham, you can download all the relevant guides and forms from this page.  If you have any questions having read the material, please get in touch with the Clerk.

Please note:
– the Parish Council only meets once per month and any requests are dealt with alongside other council business.  If you’d like some guidance about how long it will take for an application to be considered, please contact the Clerk.
– the guidance information and forms below are currently being reviewed, with updates expected in May 2026.

Ham Hire guidance and forms

  • 1. The ‘Use of the Ham’ policy (PDF).  This lays out what is permitted and how the Parish Council makes decisions on applications.
  • 2.  ‘Ham Hire Information Sheet‘ (PDF) which is self explanatory
  • 3. ‘Ham Hire Agreement’. This is ‘the form’ that needs to be filled out, and so is available as an MS Word Document for ease of filling in, but is also available as a PDF (which is not editable, but can be printed and filled out by hand if needs be).
  • 4. ‘Ham Hire Fee Schedule’ (PDF) which provides guidance on any fees levied.
  • 5. ‘Ham Hire Terms and Conditions’ (PDF).  Agreement of these is a requirement of hire.
  • 6. ‘The Ham Map’ (PDF) All hire requests are expected to submit a layout plan with your ‘Ham Hire Agreement’ form.  If you don’t have the ability to do this digitally, you can print out the map and draw your layout plan on it, take a picture and send it along with your application.
  • 7. All applications are required to submit a risk assessment.  A template is provided with some guidance included if you need it.