Every day I hear about the fantastic work that volunteers are doing right across the constituency to support the most vulnerable members of our community during the Coronavirus outbreak. Today I would like to highlight three great examples of this:
– Harpenden Cares. Charities, churches and community groups in Harpenden joined together with the Town Council to support people in Harpenden in these unprecedented times. Several hundred volunteers are there to help people who are self-isolating because they are older, have a medical condition or are showing symptoms of the virus. The call centre is open from 10.00 till 2.00 Monday to Friday and can be reached on 01582 460457. People can order shopping or medicines, get problems resolved or just have a chat. For more info or to volunteer see www.harpendencares.org. To donate go to: www.bit.ly/HarpCaresDonation
– Redbourn voluntary groups. In co-ordination with Redbourn Parish Council, Redbourn residents filled the foyer of Redbourn Parish Centre with supplies for local foodbanks at the weekend. Redbourn is also incredibly lucky to have two great organisations – the Redbourn Care Group and the Redbourn Coronavirus Volunteers – who have been working with the Parish Council to establish street co-ordinators and assist residents with shopping, post and medicine. They’re also regularly phoning residents who live alone to keep them company.
– Wheathampstead Support for All. This scheme run by the Parish Council and community organisations has over 200 volunteers doing great work across the village. This includes help with getting shopping and prescriptions and keeping in touch with people who need someone to talk to.
There are many more organisations doing great work in our communities. A link to all the local groups and their contact details can be found here.
If you know of a great initiative in your area, let me know and I will try and feature it in a future post.