Young volunteers have shared their thoughts on what it’s been like to help their community during the lockdown.
Cumbria’s Northern Fells Group (NFG) ran a successful recruitment drive for younger helpers back in March. It already had a roster of 100 people but many of those were self-isolating or aged over 70 and unable to assist.
The appeal attracted another 155 volunteers and since then the group, which covers a wide area of rural Allerdale, has been busy picking up shopping, posting mail, collecting prescriptions and medicines, delivering locally cooked take-out meals and dog walking. Village agents also coordinate a popular ‘Phone a Friend’ telephone tree, ensuring the most vulnerable receive a phone call every three days to check they are OK.
Brother and sister Emily and Felix Bauer, from Millhouse, have described their experiences of helping those in need during the lockdown.
Emily, 17, said: “It has allowed me to not only provide practical help but also maintain a connection with the community in what can feel like a disconnected and isolated time.
“It has enabled me to meet people (from a distance) that I otherwise would not have met, which has brought both enjoyment and a heightened awareness of the difficulty that many are currently living in.”
Felix, 15, said: “Being a young volunteer has enabled me to help the community in a small way during this extremely difficult time. Living in the beautiful, rural area we do means it’s sometimes easy to forget the amount of people coronavirus is affecting. However, being involved has really emphasised this fact. I think it is a really important service the Northern Fells Group offer.”
And Leah Routledge, nine, from Blennerhasset, was inspired by the group’s activities to draw a picture. Her family signed up as volunteers and has been dog walking, baking and delivering food to a lady in the community.
NFG is part of the Allerdale Resilience Group which is supported by Cumbria County Council’s Community Development Team.
NFG’s Libby Graham said: “We are so grateful to all our volunteers, particularly our younger ones. Our older, vulnerable users enjoy seeing their smiling faces and waves – they have told us how much they look forward to their physically distanced visits! In 11 weeks since we started this initiative, we have carried out 1101 ‘assists’ for people in our area – thanks to everyone who has volunteered to help.”
Cllr Deborah Earl, Cabinet Member for Public Health and Local Communities, said: “This is a fantastic example of another community project delivering support to our most vulnerable residents. The council’s Community Development Team is working closely alongside the NFG and others in the area to ensure people are able to access the help they need in their communities. Once again, I’d like to thank everyone involved in supporting Cumbria through COVID19.”
