Since 2015, our Building Better Communities campaign has awarded over £800,000 in building materials to over 100 local building projects. This year, we will be focussing on the progress of previously funded projects in order to see how far they have come!
Our biggest winner back in 2015, getting the top prize of £50,000, was the RNLI whose lifeboat station based in Penlee was in dire need of renovation. The old building didn’t have any training facilities, office space or showers. It also had extremely limited space for the crew to change into their uniforms during emergencies. It simply wasn’t functioning in the way that a lifeboat station needed to. So, with Jewson’s donation, the dream of a renovated station could finally become a reality.
With the help of Symons, a construction company based in West Cornwall, the building work began. The first hurdle of the project was the piling; due to the fact it’s all made up ground, dealing with this was tricky business! But the team got up to slab and things flowed a lot easier.
The central building is comprised of Glulam frame and external timber cladding, and strong external and internal insulation facilities, all of which had all been provided directly by Jewson.
The building has been renovated into a modern, airtight, fully-furnished work space; the changing rooms have been hugely extended, and each crew member now has their own cupboard space, complete with a clothing rail and shelf. Click here is where they are up to.
Richard Hayes from Symons told us that his team has thoroughly enjoyed working with Jewson on the Penlee Lifeboat Station renovation. He said: “I’ve even called in the evening when we’ve needed some bits and pieces urgently, they’re always here to help.”
RNLI Crew Member, Patrick Harvey, commented: “A gift from Jewson of this magnitude is brilliant, not just for the crew and the guys involved at Penlee Lifeboat Station, but the whole community.”
Check out the latest Penlee Lifeboat Station and other Building Better Community funded projects by following Jewson on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
