Members of the housebuilding industry are joining forces nationwide to help rebuild homes for people affected by the tsunami.
The First Builders Initiative has been launched by the charity Habitat for Humanity. The initiative aims to bring together groups of 8 to10 volunteers who will spend a week in Sri Lanka helping rebuild homes for families whose lives have been shattered by the tsunami.
Volunteers from apprentices to chairmen are being asked to contribute their time and specialist skills to offer practical, hands-on help to victims of the disaster. And with almost 5000 construction apprentices nationwide, it is hoped companies will view the initiative as valuable experience for their latest recruits.
As part of New Homes Week, a special all-women team has been put together to coincide with International Womens Day on Tuesday 8 March. The eight-strong team includes members of the House Builders Federation, an NHBC Pride in the Job Award winner, painters and decorators and apprentices.
Caroline Page, events manager at the House Builders Federation was one of the first to step forward to take part in the team. She says: The national outpouring of charitable donations to those affected by the tsunami has been phenomenal. Many people from the housebuilding industry, including myself, were seeking a way to get involved at a practical level. When approached by Habitat for Humanity we recognised the First Builders Initiative as a great opportunity to get involved and make an important step towards helping rebuilding people's lives.
Alongside this, we hope the all-women team will not only highlight the growing amount of women in the construction industry, but also encourage more men and women to volunteer their services for future teams.
On International Womens Day, the team will build a core house the type of simple, decent home being erected in the disaster area at John Laing Training Site, Royal Docks Campus, London E16 2QY before taking on the real challenge of building in the disaster-relief effort in Sri Lanka later in March. They will spend up to seven days there clearing debris, re-working foundations, rebuilding and repairing homes, and carrying out other recovery efforts.
The first ever female winner of a NHBC Pride in the Job Supreme Award, Gillian Jenkins, site manager for Laing ORourke Scotland, will be joining Caroline on the team. She says: When approached by the HBF, I immediately felt this was a fantastic opportunity to get involved and play a small part in helping people whose lives have been so brutally savaged by the tsunami. I hope my 12 years' experience as a site manager will be advantageous to the initiative but this is overall a team effort and we will all be striving together to create something we can stand back from and be proud of at the end of the week.
Undertaking such a hugely demanding task, volunteers for First Builder teams must be aged 21 or over, have hands-on construction knowledge and building experience, be capable of working in challenging conditions with minimal supervision, and be physically and mentally fit. Local language skills, experience or living or working in Sri Lanka or other developing countries and disaster response experience is also welcomed.
Each team must also have a seasoned construction expert, such as a site supervisor, with at least three years' experience, plus a qualified medical doctor or paramedic.
Anyone interested in sharing their skills to become part of a First Builder team and bring new hope to both families and communities in Sri Lanka, should contact Habitat for Humanity on 01295 264 240.
For further information on New Homes Week, visit the website at www.new-homes.co.uk/nhw