THE Lighthouse Construction Industry Charity Club has published its third annual impact report, which reveals how the charity is helping to improve the lives of construction workers and their families.
The organisation reported that the total spent on charitable services was £1.482 million, which includes funding for the charity’s 24/7 Construction Industry Helpline, education and training, and health and safety innovation.
Last year, 1662 cases were presented to its free helpline, with 629 of these needing emergency financial assistance and 1,033 receiving advice on welfare and mental wellbeing.
As in the previous year, the top three reported illnesses and causes of death were cancer (56%), mental health, (32%) and respiratory issues (4%).
Sarah Bolton, head of charitable services said, “We continue to work with other charitable organisations including MacMillan, MIND and the Samaritans to provide specialist support. We also utilise our referral pathways to ensure that our construction workers have access to all the possible support that is available to help them on their road to recovery.”
The report also details the charity’s involvement in the Building Mental Health programme and the recently launched Construction Industry Helpline mobile app.
The Building Mental Health working group has developed an online portal of resources to support employers in developing a positive mental health culture in their organisation. It includes a five step plan to better mental health and offers free resources including a tool box talk and information on how to access mental health training.
The Construction Industry mobile app was launched last December and has been downloaded over 10,000 times. The app is aimed at people who may not feel ready or comfortable talking about their situation and provides advice, self-help tools and coping strategies.
Bill Hill, CEO of the Lighthouse Construction Industry Charity said, “Demand in our charitable services continues to grow, but by delivering proactive resources and training at the front end we are helping organisations and individuals to prevent situations reaching crisis point. We want to develop more of these resources but can only do so with the industry’s support. Fundraising was at an all time high last year but the significant escalation in families needing our support has put considerable pressure on finances. We need predictable and sustainable income to ensure that we achieve our mission in ensuring that no worker feels alone in a crisis and that is why we launched our Company Supporters initiative. We need organisations to commit to an annual donation so that we can plan ahead and provide even more support to our industry.”
