Work is underway to bring over £10,000 of social value projects to north Manchester through our home improvements contractor.
In bidding to deliver some of our home improvements programmes, Emanuel Whittaker committed to bringing thousands of pounds worth of extra benefits to the community, in addition to hiring apprentices from the local area.
This summer, the team has bought and built a brand new shed at our Victoria Square retirement scheme in Ancoats, helping the tenants and scheme managers to launch a gardening club.
And in Newton Heath, they hired local firm Bradley Green Tree and Garden Services to overhaul the overgrown community garden at Exbridge Walk.
The work meant a lot to local resident Marlene Garnett, pictured above, who used to voluntarily look after the garden with her husband Bill but had to stop due to health complications. Watch this video to see her talk about the difference the improvements have made to the garden:
She said: “Scott and Matthew completely transformed it and I’ve got to say what a fantastic job they did – they chopped and pruned and mowed and strimmed and planted up our boxes.”
Since 2002, Marlene has run ‘Eco Youth’ – a group for local children to get involved with gardening and other activities like arts and crafts. The improvements to the community garden may give the group an opportunity to do more work there in future.
“Depending on funding and other residents doing their bit to keep it tidy and keep dogs off the green, we could possibly try again and plant up the garden,” she said.
What's next?
Emanuel Whittaker’s next social value projects for us include creating a flat-pack office for the Chatterbox Project charity in Charlestown and replacing timber boarding around the Turkey Lane & Monsall Neighbourhood Centre.
Social value is an important requirement we ask our contractors to meet. Together with our counterparts in the Greater Manchester Housing Providers (GMHP) partnership, we increase the social value that we create collectively through our supply chains. Find out more about the social value outcomes GMHP has achieved.
Emanuel Whittaker’s work across Manchester City Council homes includes various programmes such as fire safety improvements and replacement bathrooms and kitchens.
