MAY 2020 | 39
Installer Support
Read online at www.proinstaller.co.uk
COVID-19 CRISIS
APPEAL LAUNCHED
Lighthouse Construction Industry Charity is launching
a crisis appeal so that they can respond to the
needs of our workforce as a result of Covid-19.
In an industry where two
workers take their own life every
single working day and where
stress, depression and anxiety
account for a fifth of all work
related illness, we are already
seeing a devastating impact on
the people that keep our infra-
structure going, build our energy
plants, our homes and places of
work.
The charity relies heavily
on event income to fund their
24/7 Helpline, but the current
Covid-19 pandemic has decimat-
ed their national and regional
events. So, at a time when the
construction community needs
their support the most, they
simply don’t have the resources
to be able to respond in the face
of this ever-increasing cry for
help.
Bill Hill, CEO of the Charity
said, “As a result of the Corona-
virus pandemic the calls to our
Construction Industry Helpline
are currently increasing by over
25% a week. Many of the calls
received are from self-employed
tradesmen, agency staff or workers
on zero-hour contracts who cope
from week to week. They are often
only one or two paydays away
from poverty. They need our help
to feed their families and to pay
their bills for heating and lighting.
Whether you’re in a position to
donate or not, we are here for you.
Our 24/7 helpline and app will
enable anyone that needs help to
access emergency financial support
and mental health and wellbeing
information and guidance.”
The charity also pledged that
not one penny of the crisis
fund will be diverted to charity
overheads and that every penny
donated will reach the people
that really need it. This is a
difficult time for everyone, but
the charity hopes that they can
count on the industry’s gener-
osity to make sure that none of
our construction workers and
their families are left alone in a
crisis.
FREE ONLINE WELLBEING
WORKSHOPS ANNOUNCED
Calls to the UK’s ‘Con-
struction Industry Helpline’ in-
creased 25% at the beginning of
April; reflecting the rising levels
of anxiety and insecurity within
construction, installation indus-
tries and similar sectors. To help
offer support and wellbeing dur-
ing these worrying times a series
of free online lunchtime work-
shops have been announced.
Although the construction
industry is rising to the challenge
of creating a healthier work-
place, finding the right support
is not always easy and is cur-
rently more important than ever
before.
From mindfulness and
meditation to resilience and
controlling stress, anyone can
take part in these bite-sized
online sessions as long as they
have access to an email address
and access to the internet,
whether via smartphone, tablet
or laptop. For full details visit
https://www.coins-global.
com/blog/online-wellbeing-
workshops-free/bp521/
The ‘Wellbeing workshops’ are
the result of a new collaboration
between UK’s Lighthouse Con-
struction Industry Charity and
leading construction software
firm Construction Industry Solu-
tions (COINS).
COINS, with over 35 years of
developing software solutions for
construction companies, is also
passionate about giving some-
thing back to the industry. Its
CEO, Robert Brown, adds:
“The Lighthouse Club has been
providing immensely valuable
services to support construction
workers and their families for
many years. We are delighted
once again to have the oppor-
tunity to collaborate with them
in the delivery of a series of
invaluable webinars which will
provide construction workers
with vital health and wellbeing
skills during these most difficult
and challenging times.”
Another vital source of infor-
mation, advice and guidance is
The Lighthouse Club’s ‘Construc-
tion Industry Helpline’ (Tel 0345
505 1956 or mobile app for An-
droid and iOS) which helps peo-
ple experiencing stress, anxiety
or depression as well as provid-
ing access to other areas of sup-
port such as anger management,
drug and alcohol dependency,
debt management, legal advice,
and emergency financial aid.
For full details visit https://
www.coins-global.com/blog/
online-wellbeing-workshops-
free/bp521/