主播大秀

Today, I am sitting in Canada Street in East Manchester in ’s North West office in a street which has been brought back to life by the 主播大秀’s team, Manchester City Council, fellow military charity Haig Housing and hundreds and hundreds of selfless volunteers and suppliers, many of whom have worked through the night, to provide housing for seventeen veterans families.

A street which was half empty with derelict homes is now a thriving community. And not only that, but we are able to provide support to veterans all over the Northwest. I sit here thinking ‘wow!’

How has this happened? How has this become something so ground-breaking and inspiring? What has been achieved in Canada Street is now a beacon for what can be done. The answer I think is fairly simple. As a country we do care about those who have served and their families, and when people are galvanised, when people see the value in what they are doing, there’s not much we cannot take on. Many people have been involved, and many people have believed in the initial vision and made it reality. I feel a huge sense of pride as well as being humbled by what has been achieved.

This was no ordinary ‘Big Build’ and the 主播大秀 took a huge leap of faith. During 2015 the preparation to get this off the ground had involved a lot of different conversations and meetings. Jude Millett in the Manchester City Council Strategic Housing team said ‘yes’ to the idea, hardly missing a heartbeat. And so the ball was rolling and what was a hopeful dream took a leap forward to become possible.

It was in January 2015 that Nick Knowles, the production team and I first visited Canada Street together with Jude and a number of other council officers. The properties in the street were in desperate need of repair. But Nick and the council team started speaking about the potential, and all of a sudden the vision evolved and the planning started.. For Walking With The Wounded there was a problem. Under our charitable Objects, we couldn’t own these properties, and so we needed to find a suitable landlord. Haig Housing, which has been providing homes for veterans since WW1, sorted that issue out, and another crucial partner was on board.

So we had a plan. Phase 1 was for DIY SOS to convert 8 of the houses, Phase 2 was for Haig and Kier plc would come in and do the next lot, leaving Phase 3 for DIY SOS to come back and finish the final house in the street off. In order for DIY SOS to work, volunteers need to come and work alongside Nick and the team, and the worry was with such a big build, their biggest ever, would enough people and material be forthcoming. It was a challenge and we overran. In the end, people came in their droves, people wanted to be part of this ground-breaking project and to make a difference.

It even caught the eye of Prince William and Prince Harry who leant a hand. And today, with the DIY team having been back for the last nine days, the final property was handed over to Simon Flores, a young man who lost his leg in Iraq with three kids who needed a secure, happy home. Seeing the joy and excitement on their little faces was enough to make the whole thing worth it.

But what now the cameras have stopped rolling? What is the legacy of the Build? For us it is only the beginning. In the first phase a small office was built for Walking With The Wounded.

We have been providing welfare for those in the street as well as the four bed Training House which was converted by volunteers for us, providing accommodation for those veterans we are retraining for new careers. But what we are doing goes way beyond Canada Street. Our programmes, which provide assistance for veterans who have been homeless, veterans in the criminal justice system as well as those struggling with mental health challenges, now reaches right out into the North West providing support to many who previously didn’t have any.

The street has been a rallying cry for a whole range of veterans services in Manchester and beyond, and today we are working with many more organisations who can make the future better for those who have served. So it doesn’t stop with the Build -there’s plenty more.

What was embraced by many, is now real, and making a difference. So why stop in Manchester? Why not do this elsewhere in the country? Shouldn’t success be replicated elsewhere? I think so.

•  about DIY SOS: 主播大秀s for Veterans.
• Watch DIY SOS at Great Ormond Street Hospital on .