Just three years after the organisation was set up, to help tradespeople in need, Band of Builders (BoB) has become a registered charity.
Band of Builders carries out projects and adaptations to help UK tradespeople and their families affected by illness or disability. It was formed in 2016 after landscaper Addam Smith asked for help to renovate the garden of his friend and employee Keith Ellick, who had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Addam’s call saw tradespeople from across the country travel to Lincoln to completely revamp Keith’s home for his family. Keith lost his battle with cancer in 2017 but Band of Builders continued with the aim of helping other members of the UK construction industry battling illness or injury.
BoB projects have included:
● Installing a specialised bathroom for Pippa Atkinson, an electrician’s daughter suffering from a rare skin condition
● Landscaping a garden for builder Jamie Thompson, who is suffering from Motor Neurone Disease, so he can safely watch his children play, as well as installing a new kitchen.
● Creating a bedroom for plasterer’s daughter Sadie Jenkins, who had spent the first half of her life in hospital and needed machines to breathe, as well as installing a downstairs bathroom for her carers.
● Installing a summer-house and landscaping the garden for carpenter Dan McIntosh, who was diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour, so he could spend precious time with his family.
BoB founder Addam Smith won the Trade Hero category of the Jewson 2017 Building Better Communities competition, scooping £50,000 to help other tradespeople. Gaining charity status will give Band of Builders the opportunity to seek further funding to help even more tradesmen and women who are facing their own battles.
The charity is also now actively searching for future projects. It is able to help members of the UK construction industry and their families, subject to assessment of any application by its trustees and providing they meet the stipulations set out in its charitable aims.
Addam said, “Back in 2016 it was just about helping my mate but since then, BoB has grown into so much more. Thanks to the generosity of our members, the last three years has seen us help people on a scale none of us would ever have imagined. We want to do even more, and officially becoming a charity will allow us to help even more people – which is the most important thing to any of us. We want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported us, whether it’s with their time, a donation, or just bringing some bacon butties down to a project. Band of Builders really does bring out the best in people – the best in our community of tradesmen and women and in the communities around them. This is a huge milestone for us. And if we can achieve this much in three years, imagine what we can do in the next three. Watch this space!”
Our #TradesTalk community held a 24-hour tweetathon in aid of BoB back in October 2018, raising almost £2,000.
For more information visit bandofbuilders.org
