Ultimately, buildings aren’t about steel, bricks and mortar. They’re about the hopes and dreams of the people who live, work, and interact within them. It is this basic, timeless truth that informs and inspires our role in shaping the built environment.
Construction is about far more than buildings, bricks and mortar. It’s about the people who live and work in the spaces we enable, the structures we build and the landscapes we transform.
Above all, it’s about community. That’s why corporate social responsibility, charity, and philanthropy are fundamental to everything we do as a member of the DE Group of companies.
We’re proud to support entities like NESST and Mates in Mind and the valuable work they do on both a local and national basis to help the people who need it most. By sharing some of the skills, creativity and energy that drive our business, we’re able to give back to society, delivering sustainable solutions to communities throughout the UK.
As the cost of living crisis bites for many, the importance of supporting the less fortunate has never been greater. Working in central London over the years, we’ve recognised the importance of understanding who our neighbours are — and tried to come up with creative ways in which we can help them. DE Group’s innovative Wall of Kindness initiative is a great example of how we strive to give something back to the local communities in which we work.
DE Group’s initial soft launch of this concept at a construction project on Tottenham Court Road received great support from people walking past our site every day on their way to work or to school. Some left coats for others to use; others enthusiastically accepted these small acts of kindness.
Quickly recognising the success of this test site, we rolled the concept out across other locations — DE Group now have a Wall of Kindness at nine of our sites across central London. Developing the idea further during the summer months, the DE Group SHEQ team used the Walls of Kindness to set up sunscreen stations and provide sun hats. And ahead of the new school term in September, we set up a book and school shoes sharing scheme.
Alongside recognition from the wider construction community, the feedback from those who have used the Wall of Kindness has been truly humbling and has ranged from handwritten notes of thanks to heart-warming pictures drawn by children.
