Tradies hammer home incredible generosity with Ronald McDonald House refurbishment

House manager Rhiannon Curtis estimated the total value of new donated furniture and labour at more than $10,000.

It's the perfect 13^th birthday present for house that provides temporary accommodation for families of patients at Tamworth hospital.

Ms Curtis said the upgrade would be a big boost for families staying at the house.

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"We had a few little jobs completed at the entrance of the house," she said.

"We've had our front doors switched out to glass panel doors so we can let some natural light in. We've got some new cabinetry to keep things a little bit more neat and tidy. We've been able to put a roof on a pergola area to make it more usable year-round for families so there's a little bit more space outside for them to get together and enjoy the fresh air."

They've also got a refurbished dining and living room which was finished on Tuesday.

The house was built by volunteer labour, and Ms Curtis said local tradies continued to be incredibly generous with their time.

"The last few years, between natural disasters and pandemics, they would all be forgiven for not being able to put their hands in their pockets," she said.

"But even when we're in the worst situation we've probably all been in as a community ever - they're only too willing to put their hands in their pockets and get their hands dirty as well to get it all done."

The next major project at Ronald McDonald House will be a bathroom refurbishment, but the project is in its early stages of planning.

During the 2020 lockdown, the house was forced to close its doors to its scores of volunteers.

It entered 2021 relatively lightly staffed by its own standards and has been on a recruitment drive all year.

Tamworth's lockdown earlier this year interrupted volunteering, but only briefly.

Ms Curtis said they are still hoping to be able to recruit enough volunteers to be able to staff the house at all hours, every day.

"We've been really busy, we've probably been busier in the last nine to 10 months, than we have ... even pre-pandemic," she said.

All materials were donated by local suppliers.

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