Walkley Election letter April 24
Tag: foodbank
Help the NHS this New Year
In 2020 we helped and supported each other while acting responsibly and we need to carry that through into 2021. Many Sheffield people live in isolation with ongoing health conditions and need regular support to stay safe at home.
More NHS Volunteer Responders are needed in Sheffield. You need a smart phone and it’s a location based system, with alerts received by phone when you choose to be on duty.
Community Response Volunteers collect shopping, medication or other essential supplies for people self-isolating. Check-in and Chat Volunteers phone people in self-isolation at risk of loneliness for a chat
NHS Transport Volunteers transport equipment, supplies or medication between NHS services and sites.
A new role has just been added: Steward Volunteer (Covid-19 vaccinations). Stewards will guide people on site to make sure the vaccination process runs as safely and efficiently as possible. They will help ensure social distancing and identify people who need additional support.
Sheffield has areas where a lot of people need help but few people are in a position to be able to offer to volunteer. These will often be more deprived areas, possibly council estates. If you live close to these areas, volunteering will be particularly valuable. You will find it a rewarding experience knowing it takes pressure off the NHS and the wonderful frontline staff working in it.
You can apply via www.goodsamapp.org/NHS. It’s one of many ways to help in this crisis, noting that many gave up their Christmas Day this year to feed and support vulnerable and homeless people.
NHS, key workers, carers and volunteers have stepped up for us in 2020. Let’s keep doing what we can to help others in need in 2021.
Christine Gilligan Kubo
Hillsborough ward Green party
Food banks in high demand across Sheffield
According to Voluntary Action Sheffield, food banks across the city have seen a huge increase in demand for support as a result of the pandemic. In just one week in April, food banks provided food for 3,152 Sheffield residents, and the need is only increasing.
The Trussell Trust predicts a 61% increase in demand for food parcels for people in crisis across the country during October to December 2020, when compared to the same period last year.
What does this mean for Sheffield?
Jock Stevenson, of Gleadless Valley food bank, told us the demand for food has risen to “extreme levels”, and that this is happening across the city. He described how food banks in Sheffield are working with each other to make sure those people who need food are getting access to it.
The impact of the pandemic on our community is devastating, but the compassion and kindness of Sheffield’s residents is evident in the actions of the many volunteers and in the generous donations made at food bank collections.
How can we give or get help?
Gleadless Valley Foodbank gratefully accepts donations – at a safe distance – of food and essential supplies every weekday from 10am until 12pm. Collections can be made at the Methodist Church, Blackstock Road.
There is also a collection point at Heeley Parish Church, 151 Gleadless Road, S2 3AE. From 9am to 7pm every day.
For details on how to give or receive help please visit gleadlessvalley.foodbank.org.uk
For anyone living in areas other than Gleadless Valley please find your local food bank here: sheffieldfoodbank.org.uk/food-bank-list