Charity calendar puts mental health in the picture for the electrical industry
Posted by: electime 16th October 2026
A ‘Calendar Girls’ inspired fundraiser brings CEF teams and suppliers together to support mental health across the electrical industry
A charity calendar inspired by Calendar Girls is bringing people from across the electrical industry together to raise money for the Electrical Industries Charity (EIC) and encourage more open conversations around mental health.
The calendar uses humour and familiar industry references in a bid to help make mental health easier to talk about across the electrical trade.
The idea started in CEF’s Bournemouth region, where the team was looking for its next fundraising challenge after previously taking on the Three Peaks and travelling 1,600 miles between branches by foot and bike.
Paul Church, Director of Operations at CEF, was the initial driving force behind the idea. He commented: “We always try to do something as a region to raise money for charity, and in the past we’ve taken on some pretty big physical challenges. This time we spent hours trying to think of something different.
“Then, at home, I was talking to my wife, Fi, about Calendar Girls, and it sparked the idea. From there, it just grew. Our branches, senior leadership team and even suppliers wanted to be part of it and have been incredibly generous.”
What began in Bournemouth soon spread more widely, with other CEF branches getting involved, colleagues volunteering to appear in the photographs and supplier partners sponsoring individual months.
The finished calendar is a fun concept with an important reason behind it, with every month carrying a simple mental health message. The photographs use familiar electrical industry settings and products to make those messages feel close to home, from colleagues sharing the weight of a long piece of conduit to tangled cables representing how anxiety can feel.
All sales revenue will go directly to the EIC, which provides practical, financial and wellbeing support to people across the electrical and energy industry. CEF has supported the charity for many years, and for Paul, that industry connection made it a natural fit for the calendar.
Paul added: “The EIC felt like the right charity because it is so close to all of us. I know people personally who have turned to it for help. If we can have some fun with the calendar, raise money and also get somebody to check in on a mate or start a conversation they might otherwise have avoided, then it has done something worthwhile.”
The team are hopeful that the idea could grow beyond its first year, potentially bringing even more CEF colleagues and industry partners together in future.
The EIC charity calendar launched on 14th October and is available from CEF branches, with all sales revenue going directly to the Electrical Industries Charity. Ask your local CEF branch for details, or purchase online at https://www.cef.co.uk/catalogue/products/5904590-charity-calendar-2027.
