Buddy bench for school

[mlb_diy]

My son & I built a Buddy Bench for his school. 

A Buddy Bench is where kids can go if they are lonely, sad or need a friend. Other kids or teachers then come over to them to help with whatever is going on.

 

 

[Akanksha]

What a beautiful thought behind this project, @mlb_diy, I'm loving it. It's so heartwarming to see your son involved in this build too, and doing something wonderful for his peers. Did he enjoy the process? The bench itself looks lovely, and I'm sure those bright set of colours will help in brightening up someone's day. 

A huge congratulations for this project!

Akanksha  

[mlb_diy]

He loved helping with the design and had a go of all of the tools etc. My daughter made sure everyone knew that she was the one who chose the colours though! When we delivered it to school, he gave a speech and explained what it was for. He was so proud of himself, as was I.

Since dropping it off, he said that it has been used a lot for both it's intended purpose, but also a central point where they play games from and just hang out. Perfect!

[jillybean]

@mlb_diy 

Hi there this is amazing! What type of paint did you use and how did you emboss the words buddy bench on it please? Is there a timber bench pack we can buy from Bunnings to make this? We have just received a small council grant to get a buddy bench for our school but everything online is so expensive… we’d only be able to get one if we got a pre made aluminium one. Ideally we want to get 2, for the junior and senior playgrounds as they have different areas given it’s such a large primary school. Yours look like a great option. We are in St Lucia, Brisbane 

[MitchellMc]

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @jillybean. It's wonderful to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about this project.

It’s been a little while since this project was posted, but let me mention @mlb_diy so they are alerted to your questions. 

It looks like the lettering was likely routed into the timber surface, with something similar to a trim router. For the paint, I’d recommend something suitable for exterior use, such as Dulux Weathershield, so it can withstand the weather and last longer in the playground.

We certainly have the Marquee 1180 x 565 x 790mm Timber Outdoor Bench, which could be a good candidate. I've had a chat with the Activities Organiser at Bunnings Indooroopilly, and we'd like to assist the school with the purchase. I'll reach out via private message to provide further details.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell