Dulux Trade's Let's Colour Scheme Brightens Lives

Dulux Trade's Let's Colour Scheme Brightens Lives

24.07.2015

In line with the 2012 Public Services Act, public sector organisations must now consider how their supply chain partners can add real social value to the communities in which they operate. Rather than awarding contracts solely on the ability to offer best value or price for the contract, bodies such as Housing Authorities are encouraged to give consideration to the Social Value needs of the organisation when choosing suppliers, who can provide support or investment which will have a positive impact on those living in that area.

We at Dulux Trade - as part of AkzoNobel - are currently launching our social value proposition, which will offer tools to help social housing clients improve the level of social value they offer when commissioning decorating contracts. We already offer the authorities we work with a range of initiatives to support and enhance the lives of residents, from training opportunities to community painting projects.

To help improve lives across the country, we supply both products and advice to projects and community groups whose facilities require a much needed makeover, such as community centres like Gallows Close in Scarborough, pictured above. On some projects, local contractors carry out the work, while on others, teams of volunteers give their valuable time to help transform these spaces for the good of everyone. No matter how these projects are carried out, Dulux Trade's involvement makes a positive difference to the communities taking part.

In the same way we've been pioneering sustainable practices for a number of years, we are hugely committed to adding social value through the partnerships we have with our clients. All of our activities have been developed to achieve three key outcomes:

To have a positive impact on the community
To engage the community
To have a long-lasting effect

One of our community initiatives is the Let's Colour scheme. From painting a viaduct in Belo Horizonte to sprucing up a school hall in Scunthorpe, we're right there at the heart of the action, improving environments with colour. For selected projects, we provide paint and preparation products and a full support pack, as well as giving basic product training to the community project manager. One of our recent community projects, Moksliukas Nursery in Canning Town, East London was a Let's Colour success story.

The Let's Colour scheme helped staff and volunteers create a mural to teach students about the nation's capital. Using paints donated by the Dulux Decorator Centre in Barking, the team put together a design featuring landmarks including Tower Bridge, St Paul's and the iconic double-decker London bus. We asked the nursery's treasurer Svetlana about how the project has transformed the nursery for the better:

Why did you want to take part in the Let's Colour scheme?

'The Nursery's wall was tired, chipped and vandalised with graffiti. Newham Council alerted me via email about Dulux’s Let's Colour project and so we applied to take part.'

How did you decide on the design?

'We advertised within our network and received a few designs, but the London cityscape design won us over as it teaches children about the city they live in. The painting was carried out by a few volunteers from our church. It took about two weeks in total to finish it.'

How did the children and parents react to the make-over?

'Everyone was amazed at how bright and beautiful it turned out! Even during the process of painting the mural, passers-by stopped and admired the work. We also made sure we protected the finished mural with anti-graffiti paint to keep it looking good.'

What effects has it had on the nursery?

'We've had a lot of great feedback from parents when they drop off and collect their children, which is fantastic. In practical terms, it's now very easy to describe where we are, as some navigation systems do not show the correct location of the nursery. We also won Dulux's competition for the best transformation through the Let's Colour scheme, which meant we were awarded £1000 as prize money. It's made a huge difference to our nursery.'

To find out more about how we can help your local community, visit our Social Value page.