Band of Builders, a national construction charity

Band of Builders, a national construction charity, has announced that it will carry out five substantial projects this year to help members of the construction industry who are battling illness or injury. The charity, known as BoB, is planning to help people in Suffolk, North Yorkshire, Cornwall, Surrey, and South Wales.

The beneficiaries include a trainee bricklayer who suffered a brain aneurysm, an eight-year-old quadriplegic boy whose father is a general builder, and a builders’ merchant employee who was left paralysed from the waist down after a spinal abscess. Band of Builders Operations Director Tony Steel said that the charity had already galvanised support from its 50,000-strong community of volunteers and supporters. The charity is backed by major names in the construction industry, including Jewson, Gibbs & Dandy, CT1, Talasey and DEWALT.

Band of Builders aims to complete projects that will make a real difference to the lives of people from the construction industry who are facing life-changing circumstances. Since its establishment in 2016, the charity has completed practical projects to help tradespeople through renovations or repairs.

Late last year, it reached a milestone of £1m, the equivalent cost of labour and materials delivered through its projects. This involved 772 volunteers who gave up their time for free, working for a total of 203 days and 18,087 hours of labour. Materials and support were provided by organisations and businesses across the sector, which supported the charity on individual projects or through ongoing partnerships.

Band of Builders CEO Gavin Crane said that this year’s projects would be possible only because of the generosity of volunteers and partners who would give their time and materials to complete the projects. “It makes me very proud that we continue to build a community of volunteers and supporters who are willing to support fellow members of the construction industry in their hour of need,” said Gavin.

Band of Builders has already completed one project this year, which was the second phase of a project that began in October last year. The project was to level the ground floor and widen doorways at the Herefordshire home of Martin Wilks, a builder who was left paralysed after a fall.

Band of Builders is also famous for organising the Big Brew, an annual event that encourages people to raise money by hosting a brew for charity. The event has helped the charity raise thousands of pounds for its projects.