The Power of Paint
The six week summer break is set to be action-packed for our Grand Union volunteer teams; with the school holidays providing the perfect opportunity to tackle the larger practical projects at our school partners that are simply not feasible with children on site.
On Wednesday 29 July, 100 colleagues representing 14 Grand Union BID companies and supporters, joined forces at Edward Wilson primary school in Paddington.
Following flooding earlier in the year, the Edwardian building
had been left with damaged walls and paintwork. The school had been
quoted £75,000 to complete the works needed on just one of the two
floors our volunteers tackled. The building has now been transformed
thanks to the 300 hours of time and hard work given by our volunteers.
The building, which is over 115 years old, has an amazing history - serving as an emergency hospital during World War II. Volunteer teams were split across nine sites around the school – two school halls, two long corridors and five classrooms; where they were responsible for preparing and cleaning walls prior to decorating them. Spaces have been left fresh, bright and inviting, ready for pupils and teachers to enjoy in September.
We are so thankful to Grand Union BID for the amazing volunteer day they organised. To have 100 volunteers on site completing much-needed painting of key spaces in the school was an offer we couldn’t turn away!
The team organised the day so comprehensively that we had total trust that it would go smoothly and efficiently. With falling budgets and serving one of the most deprived areas of London, a ‘makeover’ of our interior learning spaces was desperately needed but beyond our scope. We were quoted figures from professional painters and decorators that would have plundered our funds and prevented us from offering a range of activities including trips and learning resources to our pupils. The fact that the project came with a generous expenses allowance for us to purchase paint and equipment was another fantastic feature of the collaboration.
We are proud of our beautiful historic building and work hard to maintain its lovely, light and spacious interiors. However, there was no escaping that many rooms had a tired, scruffy appearance and were overdue a refurbishment. The previous state of the rooms did not reflect the ambitions and pride that the school community share for our pupil. We know we are a wonderful school and just needed the bright, uplifting and professional learning environment to reflect that. Thank you very much to all the volunteers who joined this event for your meticulous and extensive decorating work!
Volunteering with Grand Union BID was incredibly rewarding for our team, giving us the chance to step outside our day-to-day work and make a meaningful contribution locally. We loved being able to give back, support the Paddington community and see the positive impact that collective effort can have.
In addition to the incredible volunteer response for this event, we also benefitted from in-kind donations of equipment. Helical generously supplied a 35 yard skip which was filled on the day with unwanted materials and equipment from around the school building.
FM Conway, who have offices in Paddington’s iconic Battleship Building, provided additional tools and materials, ensuring our volunteers had everything they needed at their disposal and maximising impact made on the day.
Whilst the remainder of our summer programme isn’t at this scale, by the start of September, Grand Union volunteers will have supported seven Paddington primary and secondary schools prepare for the new academic year - several being visited on multiple dates during the holidays.
When the schools return, it will be time to talk Christmas and your chance to join our 2026 multicompany gift wrapping extravaganza. Look out for more details in the autumn. Particularly keen elves can register their interest below!