Yaxham Cares launched on the 20th March by distributing leaflets to every household offering assistance and asking for volunteers. A joint initiative of the village hall and parish council, they recruited 74 volunteers from a community of 330 households. Over the crisis period they would successfully respond to 37 requests for help. Many of these focused on shopping and prescriptions. However, the group responded flexibly to needs as they arose.
At CAN we have been conducting research to assess the impact of COVID-19 on VCSE operations and service delivery. You can read about this here. We are featuring here regular examples of how groups and organisations have adapted their particular services. This week we’re focussing on Norfolk Community Action Network.
We’ve seen so much commitment from Norfolk’s VCSE sector in to adapting to new ways of working during COVID-19. Dealing with the impact of social isolation was a primary developmental driver for Aylsham & District Care Trust (ACT) and remains at the heart of their work today, reinforced by additional need triggered by the pandemic.
CAN’s research into the state of the VCSE sector across Norfolk during the COVID-19 pandemic has been building a comprehensive analysis of information needed for future sector planning. It also reflects the resilience which many charities and voluntary organisations have shown in adapting to delivering their services at this time. Leeway, operating across all of Norfolk and part of Suffolk, is one such.
We are regularly reporting on the wonderful achievements of Good Neighbour Schemes and community support groups – many of which have been born in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. CAN’s Development Officers have been advising and supporting many of these enterprises. Such a group is Sprowston Supporting Our Community Together, which has joined our Good Neighbour Scheme network. Their chosen title describes exactly what they do.