The Group is a patron of CRASH, the UK registered practical charity that focuses on improving the buildings used by homeless people, and set up a Group volunteering scheme with the charity during 2011.

As patrons of the charity, we can support their work in a number of ways. Firstly through a cash donation, secondly through the supply of materials and thirdly by providing on-site professional expertise.

Anchors away for training centre

Chris Radley of Galliford Try Partnerships has been advising a charitable housing trust in Suffolk about the conversion of a disused building into a training centre.

Chris, a managing surveyor based at the Chelmsford office, responded to a Group-wide request in December asking for volunteers to assist projects nominated by CRASH, the construction industries charity for homeless people of which Galliford Try is a patron.

With the support of GTP, just a month later he was on site at Anchor House, a three-floor Victorian brick building in Lowestoft. It’s owned by the town’s St John Housing Trust which provides accommodation, support and resettlement services for people who are homeless. The building has been unoccupied since it closed as a pub three years ago and is currently in a poor state. Chris’s initial brief was to develop a scope of works for the conversion of the building into a training centre which he has now issued to five local builders who are best placed to carry out this type of work. Once they come back with their prices in mid-March he will recommend one of them to the Trust who will then take the work forward.

The plan for the Anchor Training Centre includes the creation of a reception area, IT resource space and dedicated learning space for clients as well as the conversion of the kitchen into a lounge plus new offices and refurbished toilets.

“This is the first step in quite a big journey for us,” said Patrick Moir of the St Johns Housing Trust. “Without Chris we’d have struggled and gone into the project blindfolded. We don’t have any in-house expertise in this area nor could we afford to bring in someone to carry out the survey on a commercial basis. We may have ended up just going for the cheapest option which isn’t always necessarily the right thing to do or the cheapest in the long run. It’s particularly important for us to know the likely cost of the work as that sets the amount of money that we’ll need to find from fundraising. Providing a training facility should take our business into a completely new area.”

Chris (pictured in hi-viz jacket) added: “I was glad to be given the opportunity by the company to give my time for a good cause. I’ve spent a day on site and then another half a day or so compiling the scope of works. Getting involved with CRASH projects was enjoyable and is also good for the company reputation and helpful when demonstrating evidence of our approach to corporate responsibility. I would certainly be interested in volunteering again if the opportunity arises.”