Everybody loves good neighbours
Feb 23, 2016By Rukhsana Nabi – Partnerships Manager
An Oxford University study found that friendship and community are two of the most important factors that affect health and well being. This week (23 – 27 February) is Love Your Neighbour Week and this got us talking about all the great neighbours we have come across on our various projects across the North West region.
Often our Emanuel Whittaker site teams are living in the heart of a community for months and that makes us neighbours – albeit on a temporary basis. We realised that all the little things that our teams do for their ‘neighbours’ actually makes us good neighbours too.
For example, in the last few weeks alone, we have instances of neighbourliness across many of the project we are currently working on. In Trafford, where we are working for Trafford Housing Trust, we laid the base and then erected a greenhouse for residents at a sheltered scheme. In addition, our team have assisted elderly tenants who are struggling with heavy shopping.
In Bury, where we are working for Six Town Housing our team have helped residents with the final touches to their newly refurbished kitchens by putting up curtain rails and hanging curtains – or by carrying heavy boxes so they can start unpacking and getting their homes back to normal after the work. Our labourers even stopped to help an elderly gentleman with a flat tyre when he was struggling to get his tyre off his car outside our site office.
Its these little things that mean such a lot and are what makes a good neighbour. Sometimes the little things turn into big things like when we promised to help repair some old picnic benches for Alder Park School in Eccles while working for City West Housing Trust. The exterior tables and benches were in such a bad state they were beyond repair and so we decided to replace them for new ones instead.
We have found that being a good neighbour is not all one way. Our teams are often inundated with thank you cards and home made cakes by grateful residents who really appreciate their kind gestures and they would certainly agree with the finding of that Oxford University study.
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