A new support service – set up to help people in Exeter during the coronavirus crisis – has been undated with kind offers since its launch last week.
Exeter Community Wellbeing received a combined total of 250 requests for aid and overtures of assistance within the 36 hours of it going live on Wednesday afternoon.
More than 100 volunteers have come forward.
Some 150 residents have requested practical help in the city to deal with the outbreak.
The Exeter Chiefs Community Foundation has donated £100,000 to a COVID-19 grants fund and Exeter City Football Club’s CITY Community Trust is offering to get ‘stuck in’.
Exeter Community Wellbeing was launched to offer practical help and support to communities and people self-isolating as a result of the virus.
The scheme has been set up by Exeter City Council and Wellbeing Exeter.
Council leader Phil Bialyk said: “I can’t thank people enough for their kindness and practical support.
“We live in such a great city and it’s at times like this that you appreciate that it is the people that make our city great – they are absolutely inspiring, fabulous.
“Most offers of support have come in the form of practical help with shopping and medication collection. Lots of volunteers have said they want to offer to call people to check that they are safe and well.”
Exeter City Council director Jo Yelland said teachers, nurses, health workers, security firms and other professionals had pledged their support.
She added: “We’ve had a number of local groups who have set themselves up in response to the virus, contacting us asking if they can ‘donate’ their volunteers.
“Community Builders and local volunteering organisations have already matched residents with volunteers within 24 hours of the service opening, collecting prescriptions, delivering shopping and even clearing out gardens!
“Certainly we are seeing a fantastic response from our communities, pulling together when we need it most.
“I have thank everyone who has pledged their support and everyone – all the staff and volunteers who are making this work.”
As part of the scheme, a £1million community action fund was launched by Exeter City Council and Exeter Chiefs Community Foundation.
Its aim is to enable community groups and organisations to get rapid access to small grants – allowing them to work on local projects to support people and communities most affected by the pandemic.
On Friday, the Exeter Chiefs Community Foundation said it would be adding £100,000 to the action fund. The club has also offered up its vans and drivers for deliveries.
Tony Rowe OBE, chairman of the Exeter Chiefs Foundation, said: “None of us really know what is about to hit us over the coming days and weeks, but as trustees of the foundation we felt we needed to play our part and offer as much support as we could to this new service.
“Exeter Chiefs considers itself very much at the heart of the community locally and this is our way of giving back to that same community who give so much to us in return during these very tough times.”
Jamie Vittles, chief executive of CITY Community Trust, said it made ‘complete sense’ for his team to get involved.
The organisation, which is the partner charity of Exeter City Football Club, would normally be preparing for its Easter holiday clubs at this time of year, or delivering its huge variety of community activities for people of all ages.
Mr Vittles added: “Coronavirus has had a huge impact on the delivery of our services, with the majority of the work we do at a standstill.
“Our team are prepared to get stuck in and help in any way they can, whether that is collecting prescriptions or delivering urgently needed supplies.
‘We take our place at the heart of the community in Exeter very seriously and will do whatever we can. It’s in our blood, it’s our ethos – it’s just what we do.”
To get involved with Exeter Community Wellbeing, a simple online form is available here.
Alternatively, call 01392 265000 between 9am and 5pm, Mondays to Fridays, and 9am and noon on Saturdays and Sundays.
