This year, BAM lent its support to Voluntary And Community’s (VAC) Winter Care Pack project, which has significantly impacted the local community since its launch in 2021.
Winter can be a challenging time and this initiative aims to reduce the demand for urgent and emergency services by ensuring our communities have access to the right information and support.
The Winter Care Packs, distributed by local charities such as Age UK Calderdale & Kirklees, are provided free of charge to individuals in need.
Each pack contains essential items such as blankets, first aid kits, thermal flasks and cup-a-soups as well as informational support and guidance designed to help keep people warm during the colder months while also encouraging people to choose well and opt for convenient self-care, where safe to do so during the Winter months.
Kate Hornby, Volunteer Hub Coordinator for VSI Alliance, shared details of the volunteering opportunity with local businesses, inviting them to help assemble the care packs.
Over four days, BAM Nuttall employees joined other volunteers to pack over 3,000 tote bags with the essential service information and care pack contents, supporting charities with limited resources to do this themselves.
Rebecca Stone, BAM’s Social Sustainability Coordinator, shared her experience volunteering:
“It’s nice to do something different but also give back to the local community. It’s great that it’s here but also quite humbling this is needed. It’s been a really eye-opening experience for us…
It’s nice to spend time with a colleague in a different environment…and it’s rewarding. All of my team that have been here this week, all have messaged me saying thank you for organising, it’s good to get out and give something back for the communities we’re working in.”
General Foreman, Darral Hall, also joined the volunteer efforts, commenting:
“It’s surprising how much it sends it home the message when you come here and see all the boxes, and the bags and all the hard work that goes into this. It really is an effort and it was a great day assisting a very good cause”
Mark Harrison, Contracts Manager at BAM UK & Ireland, expressed his pride in supporting the initiative:
“We’re really chuffed to be able to support the team and hopefully carry on supporting this cause for many years to come.”
Kate Hornby, who has been involved with the Winter Care Packs project since its inception, was amazed by the progress this year.
“This is the quickest we’ve ever completed the care packs, and BAM played a key role in that. Their enthusiasm and flexibility made a huge difference. I even noticed some friendly competition among the team to see who could do the most, which definitely added to the energy! It was touching and heartwarming to see how engaged the staff were, genuinely caring about who would benefit from the packs and being so emotionally invested in this cause. They gave it their all, and we are incredibly grateful for their support.”
We can all play our part to protect ourselves and those around us, for self-care tips and local services information visit: https://togetherwe-can.com/
To view the 2025 VSI Alliance VCSE Directory, providing information on local support from Calderdale Voluntary, Community & Social Enterprise (VCSE) Sector Organisations visit: https://vsialliance.org.uk/vcse-directory-2025/