Volunteers and businesses are here to help

As the Covid-19 virus turns life in South Holland upside down, the community and businesses are doing what they can to help the district’s most vulnerable and each other.

A host of groups have been set up online with volunteers offering to provide help to those self-isolating, be they aged over 70 or suffering from medical conditions.

Many have been using a form such as the one pictured left and placed it through the doors of those who are vulnerable offering help.

This includes a team called the Spalding COVID Kindness Team and a group set up by Hayley Gedney.

Hayley has set up a support group in Long Sutton and yesterday delivered the first prescriptions to people advised to stay indoors.

She’s also posted helpful leaflets through doors and has been contacted for advice as a result.

Hayley posted her intentions to help on social media last week and said she’s been inundated with volunteers wanting to help out too from the likes of Holbeach, Moulton and Spalding.

She’s also been asked for advice from those self-isolating.

“I have been swamped with offers to volunteer,” she said. “I am trying really hard to ensure I have all their details, but with working too, its starting to get manic!”

“I really hope that we can help those in need, and we are all happy to do it voluntarily just for the cost of the shopping.

“We do want people to know that they can call someone should they need assistance with their weekly essentials.

“I have now seen so much of this in different communities, and it’s great to see at a time in need, the communities all pulling together to help each other.”

To register your needs with that group, contact Hayley on 07939 593957 or email hayley.gedney@rj-wilson.co.uk

Meanwhile The Spalding COVID Kindness Team is encouraging people to post to a Facebook page with their requests for volunteers for shopping and other tasks.

It’s been set up by mum of two Keira Williamson who runs mother and baby groups through her company Zen Mama.

She said: “We’ve already got a really good team of volunteers offering to help out and offering services.

“Fenland Fruit and Veg have got in touch to help and look to offer products for people..

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“I feel at the moment we as a community need to come together, take away individual needs and work for each others.”

Keira is also looking to urge people to remember food banks at this difficult time.

“Donations to those have been drying up recently so we’d like to remind people to look after those that need it most too.”

To get involved in the group you can find the Spalding COVID Kindness Team on Facebook and if you want to volunteer you can join the group Spalding COVID Kindness Team volunteers.

Members of the group Love Weston have been out and about leaflet dropping and Coun Andrew Woolf is looking to put a team of ‘Street Ambassadors’ together for the village.

He posted online: “A Street Ambassador would be a point of contact in your street or immediate vicinity where those who are in isolation can make contact if they need groceries, prescriptions or even a quick phone call to make sure everything is ok.”

More information can be found on the Love Weston Facebook group.

Elsewhere, businesses have been helping out where they can.

Bookmark of Spalding is looking to offer free home delivery for people and pay postage for people further afield.

Smalldean Trading, who operate the cafe at the Castle Sports Complex in Spalding, is looking to launch a meals on wheels service.

The firm ran already provides meals for one person and they’re offering it to others too.

Sally Willoughby-Jardine said: “We’re not doing it to make a profit.
“We’ll be delivering a hot meal and also a sandwich and cake for another meal if people want it.

“It’s all about helping those in the community who are most vulnerable.”

South Holland and the Deepings MP, Sir John Hayes, (pictured) said: “We need to work together to tackle this.

“Britain has faced other such incidents before but not in our lifetime have we seen anything like this that shows how devastating a pandemic can be.

“It’s time now to make serious precautions and make sensible decisions in the public interest.

“It’s about recognising the vulnerable that are most at risk, about protecting them as much as we can and working together as communities.

“We need to trust the advice of the science professionals whose advice the government policies are being based on.

“It’s going to be a difficult challenge but this is how we can tackle this together.”