Marking World Homelessness Day

This World Homelessness Day we wanted to highlight our social impact activity which focusses on addressing homelessness in all its forms.

Roofs over heads for those in need

Back in the Summer we announced our extended partnership with Emmaus UK, where we committed to donate 50p for every full pallet of Danum and Danum Dual TLE purchased. 

This builds on our 2024 commitment to Emmaus UK, where we contributed £10,000 to the charity’s Companion Training and Wellbeing Fund - a grants programme which allows companions to access funding for learning purposes.

An Emmaus companion is a person who lives and works in an Emmaus community, receiving support while rebuilding their life after experiencing homelessness. There are currently 29 Emmaus communities located across the UK, supporting more than 850 formerly homeless people (companions).

In 2024/25, we supported 30 grants to companions, enabling them to progress in areas relating to construction and the trades. Grants awarded included plumbing courses, a set of roofing tools, trade card renewals, forklift licenses alongside other construction skills and work-based training courses.

Damian, a companion at Emmaus Hampshire undertook an Introduction to Plumbing Course in August 2024 and comments “The training and college were excellent. The benefit of the training is that I learnt new skills, and it gave me the confidence to realise that I can be a plumber in future years. I am now attending a Level 2 BPEC in Plumbing course, to allow a career in plumbing in the future”.

His support worker comments “In addition to the technical skills he has developed, it is remarkable what this course has done for his confidence and self-esteem. He has also taken on a carpentry course as practically, plumbers need to do DIY within some of their projects. Within our community, he has also become a star in upcycling leather goods. We are confident that he has a career in plumbing and can move on by 2027, once his stage 2 training is complete.”

Last year 326 Emmaus companions gained employment and/or moved on into stable, independent housing. The Companion Training and Wellbeing Fund plays a vital role in making this possible, giving companions the support and resources they need to succeed.

Building for the future

In addition to cash giving, we’re also donating product to Emmaus UK communities with a project at Emmaus Oxford in progress, which will see the much-needed community expand their accommodation provision to house even more vulnerable people.

Construction and manufacturing careers for young care leavers

Young care leavers are disproportionally affected by homelessness with 33% becoming homeless within two years of leaving care. The rate of homelessness among care leavers has risen more than twice as fast as the overall number of homeless households.

These figures highlight how vulnerable care-experienced young people are when transitioning to independence and one of the reasons we have partnered with The National House Project (NHP).

This year we provided bursary monies for young people to access a wide range of construction related careers including plumbing and bricklaying. To date we’ve supported five young people with support including CSCS cards to improve access to work, as well as funding for essential tools, specialised clothing, and bespoke training courses. 

Sam Ankers, Practice Lead at the National House Project says “Often care leavers are without the bank of mum and dad and many have to survive on very little income. The support from the bursary has helped these young people continue to aspire and thrive in their roles or within their education establishments.”

This October, the wienerberger team will be taking a group of young care leavers to MAKEUK’s Technology Hub in Birmingham to give them an insight into engineering careers. Later this year we’ll also be planning for our 2026 pre-employability programme, co-designed with the young people, giving them the knowledge and confidence when exploring careers in our wider sector.

To find out more about our social impact and wider sustainability work visit our website.