Band of Builders to adapt home of former West End actress

Volunteers from Band of Builders (BoB) have answered a call for help to make adaptations to the Plymouth home of former West End child actress and dancer, Audra Mitcheson-Soley.

Soley’s career spans nearly five decades, but she now suffers from a number of conditions – including hypermobility, connective tissue disease, arteriosclerosis, bruits and a dilated aorta– which will ultimately see her needing the use of a wheelchair. Soley and her husband– a time-served carpenter – put out a plea for help to Band of Builders (BoB) to install a new bathroom.

A team of up to half a dozen volunteers from BoB – a registered charity that completes practical projects to help members of the UK construction industry who are battling illness or injury – will descend on Soley’s home in Torpoint at the start of the w/c 23rd May to complete the project by the weekend.

Audra Mitcheson-Soley said: “I cannot thank Band of Builders enough for coming to help.”

“This is very exciting for us to finally have a bathroom that work properly and being able to have a shower a couple of times a day will really help ease my constant pain and discomfort. It will make my world so much easier.”

Kevin Choat, BoB project lead, added: “I’m proud to be leading a Band of Builders team that will be volunteering time to create an accessible bathroom that will meet Audra’s immediate and future needs.”

“It’s so important that the construction community looks after one another and I know all the volunteers on this project see it as a privilege to be able to do something that will make Audra’s life better.”