Coventry College duo join national effort by becoming NHS volunteers

#YourNHSNeedsYou – @CoventryCollege’s senior management are leading the way in community spirit after signing up as volunteers to support the NHS in its battle against COVID-19.

The College’s CEO, Gill Banks, and Chair, Sue Noyes, are two of the 500,000-strong people who have officially put themselves forward as NHS Volunteer Responders.

These responders are designed to relieve pressure on the NHS by carrying out non-medical tasks for people with underlying health conditions, such as delivering food and medicines, driving patients to appointments, and phoning the isolated.

The duo will receive phone alerts detailing requests from vulnerable people in the nearby community whilst on duty.

Gill said: “I think everyone in the country is in awe of the sterling effort that the NHS is putting in to protecting so many people at once.

“It’s also a scary time for those who are perhaps elderly and on their own as this is such an unprecedented situation that we find ourselves in, so volunteering to do my part is the least that I could do.

“As a college we are passionate about serving our local communities, and hopefully our decision to sign up as NHS volunteers will prompt others to do so too.”

Gill and Sue’s volunteering comes just a week after the College donated around 40 food packages to the Moat House Community Trust, which ended up in the hands of children at Moat House Primary School and St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School.

Sue added: “This is a great initiative across communities, and as soon as I heard about it I wanted to get involved and support the NHS, which is very close to my heart after working there for many years. 

“Our College is currently in discussion with some of its Public Services and Health and Social Care students to see how they can support further, as it presents a valuable opportunity for them to make a real difference in their communities too.”

If you’re fit and healthy, #YourNHSNeedsYou. Working with @GoodSamApp, we’ve launched NHS Volunteer Responders which means you can now help the most vulnerable people in your community who need to stay home because of #coronavirus. ✊ https://t.co/YFa30ZpklS pic.twitter.com/BxaLXrrya9

— NHS England and NHS Improvement (@NHSEngland) March 24, 2020

For more information about becoming an NHS Volunteer Responder, visit www.england.nhs.uk