Venue hire agreement, Ashworth Memorial Hall

Venue hire agreement template with bump in, noise and a bond

Hall hire disputes are almost always about time and noise: the hirer thought the hire started when guests arrived, and the committee thought music stopped at eleven. This agreement prices bump in, the event and bump out as three separate periods, and ties the curfew to the planning permit rather than to a preference.

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Ashworth Memorial Hall
Managed by the Ashworth Hall Committee · bookings@ashworthhall.example · Booking AH-2027-214
Venue hire agreement · Ashworth Memorial Hall · Booking AH-2027-214Page 1 of 4
Venue hire agreement · Ashworth Memorial Hall · Booking AH-2027-214Page 2 of 4
Venue hire agreement · Ashworth Memorial Hall · Booking AH-2027-214Page 3 of 4
Venue hire agreement · Ashworth Memorial Hall · Booking AH-2027-214Page 4 of 4
Venue hire agreement

This agreement is made on 3 May 2027 between the Ashworth Hall Committee, which manages Ashworth Memorial Hall at 6 Kerr Street, called the committee, and Simone Arriaga of 18 Pellow Road, called the hirer, for the hire of the main hall, the kitchen and the side room on Saturday 16 October 2027 for a wedding reception of 150 guests.

$1,240
Hire fee
$800
Bond
150
Capacity
11.00 pm
Music off
1. The hire period
1.1
Bump in and bump out are part of the hire
The hire period is the whole of the time in the table below, not only the hours guests are present. Nobody is on site before the start of bump in or after the end of bump out, because the alarm is armed outside those times and the committee is charged for a false call.
Period
Time
What happens
Charge
Bump in, Friday
4.00 pm to 8.00 pm
Tables, chairs, styling, florist, deliveries
$180.00
Event, Saturday
2.00 pm to 11.30 pm
Setup, ceremony, reception, guests away by 11.30 pm
$860.00
Bump out, Sunday
8.00 am to 11.00 am
Clear, clean, hired items collected
$140.00
Kitchen use
Across the hire
Commercial oven, cool room, dishwasher
$60.00
Hire fee
$1,240.00
1.2
Running over
Time used outside the table is charged at $90 an hour or part of an hour, taken from the bond. The hall is booked again from 2.00 pm on the Sunday, so the bump out window cannot be extended.
2. Payment and bond
2.1
Deposit, balance and the bond
A deposit of $400 is paid on signing and holds the date. The balance of $840 and the bond of $800 are due 21 days before the event, on 25 September 2027. The bond is held in the committee account, is not spent, and is returned in full within 10 business days after bump out where the hall is left as clause 5 requires and nothing is damaged.
2.2
What may come out of the bond
Extra hours under clause 1.2, cleaning the committee has to arrange, repairing damage, replacing a missing item from the inventory, a call out fee if the alarm is triggered, and a fine if one is issued to the committee for noise. Anything taken from the bond is itemised in writing with photographs within 10 business days, and the rest is returned.
3. Capacity, safety and the permit
3.1
One hundred and fifty people, and no more
The main hall is certified for 150 people seated at tables. The number includes guests, the wedding party, the band and every supplier on site. The hirer counts guests at the door and keeps the count. Exits, the corridor and the area in front of the switchboard stay clear, and no decoration is fixed over an exit sign or a smoke detector.
3.2
Alcohol and the licence
The hall holds no liquor licence. The hirer obtains a limited licence for the event, sends a copy to the committee at least 14 days before, and displays it on the night. Alcohol is served by people named on that licence and service stops at 11.00 pm with the music.
4. Noise
Music off at 11.00 pm, doors closed from 9.00 pm
The hall sits among houses and the planning permit limits amplified music to 11.00 pm. Amplified music stops at 11.00 pm, the roller doors and the side doors stay closed from 9.00 pm, and guests leave quietly through the front doors only. Where the committee is fined for a noise breach, the fine is deducted from the bond.
4.1
Who is responsible on the night
The hirer names one person who is on site for the whole hire period, whose number is given to the committee and to the caretaker, and who can be woken by a phone call. That person manages the sound level, the doors and the departure of guests.
5. Leaving the hall
5.1
What has to be done before the keys go back
The committee cleans the toilets and mops the main floor after every hire, and that is inside the fee. Everything below is the job of the hirer, and anything left undone is charged from the bond at $65 an hour.
1.
Tables and chairs wiped down and stacked where the floor plan on the noticeboard shows.
2.
All rubbish and recycling bagged and placed in the bins in the side yard, and bin lids closed.
3.
Kitchen benches, oven, cool room and dishwasher wiped out, and nothing left in the fridge.
4.
Every decoration, hook, cable tie and piece of tape removed from the walls, ceiling and beams.
5.
Hired items collected inside the bump out window, or the hirer arranges storage elsewhere.
6.
Confetti, rice and glitter are not used at all, inside or outside.
7.
Keys returned to the lock box and the alarm armed before leaving.
6. Cancelling, insurance and general
Hirer cancels
Deposit
Balance and bond
More than 90 days before
Refunded less $60
Not yet due
30 to 90 days before
Kept by the committee
Not yet due
Under 30 days before
Kept by the committee
Balance kept, bond returned
6.1
Insurance, damage and what the committee is not liable for
The hirer holds public liability insurance of at least $20 million for the event and gives a certificate of currency 14 days before. Every supplier the hirer brings holds its own cover. The hirer is responsible for damage caused by anyone at the event. The committee is not liable for property left at the hall, and items not collected within seven days may be disposed of.
6.2
If the hall cannot be used
Where the hall cannot be used because of damage, a failure of power or water, or an order from an authority, the committee tells the hirer as soon as it knows and refunds everything paid. The committee is not liable beyond that refund, and the hirer is encouraged to hold event cancellation cover.
For the Ashworth Hall Committee
Name
:
Position
:
Date
:
Simone Arriaga, hirer
Name
:
Date
:

Section by section

What each section is for, so you can keep the ones you need and drop the rest.

Parties and key facts
The committee, the hirer, the rooms and the date, with the fee, bond, capacity and curfew.
1. The hire period
Bump in, event and bump out as separate charged periods, and what running over costs.
2. Payment and bond
The deposit and balance dates, the $800 bond and the five things that can come out of it.
3. Capacity, safety and the permit
One hundred and fifty people including suppliers, clear exits, and the limited liquor licence.
4. Noise
The curfew callout tied to the planning permit, and the person responsible on the night.
5. Leaving the hall
What the committee cleans, and the seven job checklist the hirer has to complete.
6. Cancelling, insurance and general
The cancellation table, insurance and damage, and what happens if the hall cannot be used.
Signatures
A block for the committee and one for the hirer.

Clauses in this document

How to adapt this agreement

For a hall with an in house caterer or a licensed bar, delete clause 3.2 and replace it with the venue licence conditions and a minimum spend, because the liquor arrangement is usually where the money is. For a regular hire such as a weekly class, replace the three period table with a recurring schedule and a term, drop the bond to a smaller rolling amount, and add a clause on what happens when a public holiday falls on the usual day. For a hall in a residential street with a stricter permit, move the curfew earlier, add a clause requiring a noise monitor or a decibel limit at the mixing desk, and require guests to leave through one door, because those three terms together are what keeps a permit alive.

Who this suits

A single event hire of a community facility, where a volunteer committee is on the other side of the table and there is no venue manager on duty. That is why the agreement names one person who is on site for the whole hire and reachable by phone, and why the cleaning checklist is written as jobs rather than as a standard. A commercial function centre with staff on the floor needs a different document: the risk sits with the venue, the cleaning is theirs, and the negotiation moves to minimum spend, beverage packages and the final numbers date. If the hall is council owned, check the booking conditions the council already imposes before adding terms, because a hirer signing two documents that disagree is worse off than one signing neither.

What makes this document work

Bump in and bump out are priced, not assumed

Four hours on the Friday at $180, the event block on the Saturday at $860, three hours on the Sunday at $140 and $60 for the kitchen, adding to $1,240. Clause 1.1 says nobody is on site outside those windows because the alarm is armed, which turns a vague expectation into a schedule.

The curfew has a reason and a consequence

Amplified music stops at 11.00 pm because the planning permit says so, the doors close from 9.00 pm, and a noise fine issued to the committee comes out of the bond. Clause 4.1 then names one person who is on site for the whole hire and can be woken by a phone call.

The cleaning list is specific enough to be checkable

Seven numbered jobs, from stacking chairs to the floor plan on the noticeboard, with the committee doing the toilets and the main floor inside the fee. Anything left undone is $65 an hour from the bond, so the standard is a list rather than an opinion.

Questions people ask

What should a venue hire agreement include?

The rooms, the date and the exact hire period including setup and pack down, the fee and what it covers, the bond and what can come out of it, the capacity, noise limits, who is responsible on the night, a cleaning standard, cancellation terms and insurance requirements.

What is bump in and bump out?

Bump in is the time before the event for delivery, setup and styling. Bump out is the time afterwards for clearing and cleaning. Both are venue time and both cost money, which is why they appear as separate rows in the hire period table with their own charges rather than being folded into the event.

How much bond should a hall take?

Enough to cover the extra cleaning, a broken fitting and a noise fine. Eight hundred dollars on a $1,240 hire is a common ratio for a community hall with a 150 person capacity. Clause 2.2 lists the five things that can come out of it and requires an itemised claim with photographs within 10 business days.

Does a hirer need public liability insurance?

For an event of this size, yes. Clause 6.1 requires $20 million of cover for the event with a certificate of currency 14 days out, and requires every supplier the hirer brings to hold its own. Many councils and insurers will not allow a hall hire to proceed without it.

Who holds the liquor licence for a hall event?

Not the hall, in this case. Clause 3.2 says the hall holds no liquor licence and the hirer obtains a limited licence, sends a copy at least 14 days before and displays it on the night, with service by people named on that licence and stopping at 11.00 pm with the music.

What happens if guests stay past the finish time?

Clause 1.2 charges $90 an hour or part of an hour, taken from the bond, and notes that the hall is booked again from 2.00 pm on the Sunday so the bump out window cannot be extended. Naming the next booking is usually more persuasive than the hourly rate.

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Sources

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