As soon as we heard about the heartening work of Band of Builders, we knew we had to be involved.  Originally founded in 2016, it soon evolved to become an official charity in 2019, helping members of the construction community in their hour of need.

Here we speak to Andy Taylor, Partnerships Director at the charity about the incredible work they’re doing, and why partnerships such as ours play an integral role in helping them achieve their goals 

Band of Builders started out in 2016 when our founder Adam Smith set out to help his friend Keith Ellick – a colleague who had been diagnosed with terminal cancer.  We put a request on social media asking for assistance from people in the trade to help renovate Keith’s house and were completely overwhelmed with the response of people all wanting to help. 

Keith’s house was soon completed, and nine years on from that single social media post, we’re approaching our fiftieth project which is a real milestone for us. 

We’ve since grown into a community of people across the construction industry – each of whom is committed to helping a fellow worker at a time when they need it the most. Over the years, one of the most amazing things is that people rarely volunteer once and over the years we’ve had people coming back annually to help us. 

We’re also here to support mental health through our 24/7, 365 days a year helpline. I think it’s fair to say there’s a lot of bravado between men – especially in this industry – so this support is vital. People are often suffering behind the scenes and no-one would have any idea, we want people to know there is always support available to them. 

Spreading the word

That is why endorsement from Bluebay is so integral to us in reaching as many people as possible. Bluebay has so much reach across the country with many depots and customers – this reputation and standing opens a lot of potential to help even more people. We’re incredibly grateful to have their support; we’re still a relatively small charity with just three full time staff as we want to be able to help as many people as possible – that’s quite simply our goal. 

Bluebay’s support helps us complete the huge variety of jobs we are faced with. These can be anything from making accessible bathrooms and kitchens, wheelchair ramps, cabins and even complete home renovations. 

Changing lives

It’s sobering to hear how quickly people’s lives can change which is why we’re so passionate about delivering life enhancing projects. We were able to increase the footprint of this man’s bathroom making it more accessible for him to use – quite literally transforming his day-to-day life. 

We’re hoping to complete ten projects this year, in places where we can have the biggest impact on people’s lives across the UK. In addition to the physical construction work and mental health helpline, we also provide financial welfare grants. These help people in a time of need when their van may have broken down or their tools have been stolen. 

We find many in the construction industry live from job to job, so an unexpected cost can completely derail them – this initial financial support is a way to help them through it with the added support of the helpline. 

We’re grateful to have Bluebay on board, they interface with so many people in the industry and can help build awareness of the work we do. We find holding ‘Big Bru’ events at building sites and merchants yards are a great organic way to raise awareness and start conversations. We find our helpline the busiest between midnight and 2am with loneliness a huge factor, so our overacting message is for people to know they are never alone and that our support is there.

We look forward to helping more people with continued support from Bluebay and our wonderful community by our side.