Coronavirus has presented this country with an unprecedented challenge, and it affects every local community. We are all having to change the ways we live and work.
The government’s guidelines – that you must stay at home, only leaving for limited purposes – will slow the spread of the virus, so fewer people need hospital treatment at any one time, thereby protecting NHS capacity. If you’re not sure, you can check the full advice here.
While following these rules is essential, I also recognise that it presents difficulties locally and that this is particularly true for the elderly and vulnerable. To help with this, I’ve been working with an invaluable local initiative to get basic shopping essentials to those who need it most in Elmbridge. This effort brings together the East Elmbridge Foodbank, Surrey County Council, local churches and the Besom charity in Esher. On Friday, I joined Jenny French from the foodbank and Alex Munro, the Curate at St Peter’s in West Molesey, to deliver food parcels to those who need them and either can’t or would struggle to get hold of them through other means – following the strict guidelines for delivering them safely.
I will continue to support these local initiatives over the coming weeks, because it’s important to look out for the isolated and vulnerable in our neighbourhoods at times like this. If you wish to offer your support, the foodbank is currently seeking cash donations so that it can purchase supplies direct from wholesalers and ease pressure on local supermarkets. Details on how you can contribute are here. As we are forced to adapt to this situation, strong local community spirit will be really important. We should all be staying in touch with our neighbours, especially those who are elderly or vulnerable, and helping them out – and this can be done at a safe social distance.
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