Salvation Army keeps DIY SOS team refreshed

There may be a chance to spot The Salvation Army in an episode of BBC’s DIY SOS programme on Friday, 24 October. 

One of the church and charity’s Incident Response Vehicles from the London Division was on site to provide refreshments to people involved in a DIY SOS Big Build of a family home in South London. 

Filming took place back in April and saw 38 Salvation Army volunteers serve approximately 600 drinks and more than 500 chocolate bars as well as plenty of fruit and crisps over the nine days of the build.

DIY SOS, which is presented by Nick Knowles, recruits local tradespeople and suppliers to help build ambitious projects for local families and the community.

The Salvation Army’s volunteers were led by Major Karl Gray who is also one of the church leaders for The Salvation Army in the borough of Redbridge. 

Karl said: 

“It was great to be able to support DIY SOS in this way and we had lots of good conversations with people on site. The privilege of seeing a family find hope again with a new home was immense. The care and compassion from the DIY SOS team shone through. They were focused upon achieving the best possible outcome for the family whose lives they were changing. 

“We are extremely grateful to everyone from The Salvation Army who volunteered their time – on top of their usual jobs and family commitments - to staff our vehicle over the days of the build to help keep people on site refreshed. Without our volunteers this could not have happened so a big thank you to everyone involved.”

The Salvation Army has 26 response vehicles operating across the country which support emergency services attending major incidents, providing refreshments and a listening ear. The vehicles attend around 300 incidents each year. The DIY SOS episode airs on BBC1 at 8pm on 24 October. It can also be viewed on BBC iPlayer.