Voluneering | Brixton Neighbourhood Forum

8 June 2020 rules update: See exactly what applies in full detail here

Important advice on travelling here

Local advice and resources from Lambeth, Brixton BID and links to local self-help groups
Regional advice and resources from the mayor of London and Metropolitan Police
National advice from the government, NHS and Public Health England
Volunteering: Advice on staying safe
Food growing and community gardens
Health, wellbeing, faith and culture at home and outside
Shopping in Brixton
Crime resources: Domestic abuse and scams
Pandemic statistics: International national and local

Local – Lambeth

Lambeth helpline for access to food and medicines: 020 7926 2999

Lambeth’s Get Support site (Assistance – Financial help, benefits, employment and housing advice – mental health, domestic violence and emotional support – children and families)

Lambeth Food Hub This has been a joint effort between Lambeth Food Partnership, Incredible Edible Lambeth and the Healthy Living Platform, led by Sue Sheehan. Using the bowling green in the basement of the Brixton Rec., volunteers have been sorting donated groceries and packing lots of food boxes to send out to vulnerable households, mostly delivered by bike. 7000 boxes had gone out as of a week ago.For a good summary of the various food and food-growing initiatives in and around Lambeth, see the website www.lambethfoodpartnership.org.uk and follow the links to Covid 19-related services. Enquiries to lambethfood@gmail.com The Healthy Living Platform is about to put out a call for more volunteers – see their website, www.healthylivingplatform.org or e-mail to incredibleedibleleap@gmail.com or phone 07 701 365 551.

A Portuguese language helpline to support Portuguese speakers has been set up by the Lambeth Portuguese Wellbeing Partnership with Age UK: 020 3143 4060 – open seven days a week 10am-4pm They are also looking for more Portuguese speaking volunteers to help run the helpline. Full information is here http://www.lambethlife.com/lambeth-talk-covid-19-support-available-for-portuguese-readers/

Lambeth’s main information page is here https://www.lambeth.gov.uk/coronavirus-covid-19

Lambeth’s downloadable guide covering a wide variety of topics is here http://www.brixtonneighbourhoodforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Community-organisation-external-FINAL-9-April.pdf

Local Business Support from Brixton Business Improvement Disctrict https://www.brixtonbid.co.uk/covid-19/

Lambeth Mutual Aid – a growing group of volunteers committed to providing and facilitating mutual support in our community http://a growing group of volunteers committed to providing and facilitating mutual support in our community.

Local and street level self help groups as compiled by Brixton Buzz http://www.brixtonbuzz.com/2020/03/lambeth-coronavirus-full-listing-of-local-whatsapp-support-groups/

Regional – Mayor of London / GLA / TfL

Mayor of London resources and advice https://www.london.gov.uk/coronavirus

Thrive London – a citywide movement to improve the mental health and wellbeing of all Londoners. It is supported by the Mayor of London and led by the London Health Board partners https://thriveldn.co.uk

Metropolitan Police – Be clear about the restrictions, and other advice https://www.met.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/c19/coronavirus-covid-19/

Transport for London have issued advice on new terms of carriage starting on 15 June, in particular the wearing of face coverings. General advice on travelling on all public transport is here: http://www.brixtonneighbourhoodforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/GOV-Travel-Advice.pdf

Adaptations at Brixton station – It’s been a while since many of us have been on the tube, and the advice remains to only travel if you need to. Just as in the shops, new sanitising and distancing measures are in place, along with new signage. This short video blog shows how Brixton station has been adapted, so you know what to expect if you do need to travel, and includes an interview with the Managing Director of London Underground. https://youtu.be/bykaHNVYflk

National

UK Government

Protect yourself and others
Testing
Health and wellbeing
Employment, financial support and money
Working safely
Business and self employed people
School openings, education and childcare
Housing and accommodation
Driving and transport in the UK
International travel and immigration
Volunteering and offering help
Healthcare workers, carers and care settings
Support if someone dies

https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus

Leaflet on protecting yourself and others https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/877678/coronavirus-leaflet.pdf

NHS

Concerns about symptoms – NHS 111

NHS Latest information and advice

Check of you or your child has symptoms
Self-isolation and treatment if you have symptoms
Testing and tracing
People at higher risk
Social distancing and changes to everyday life

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

Public Health England

PHE publishes free campaign material that can be used for posters and on websites https://coronavirusresources.phe.gov.uk/

Latest advice on distancing for young people (updated 9 May) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-staying-at-home-and-away-from-others-guidance-for-young-people/covid-19-staying-at-home-and-away-from-others-social-distancing-guidance-for-young-people

All public advice (updated 1 June) https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-list-of-guidance

Health & Safety Executive

The HSE has not featured prominently in the public consciousness to date, but points out that businesses should stay open as much as possible, except for some non-essential shops and public venues that were ordered by the government to close. Some construction sites and other businesses are beginning to re-open, having taken time to reassess working practices against the distancing requirements. The prospect of no early end to distancing will mean that more businesses that can, are likely to reopen and adapt rather than wait indefinitely. This page has specific advice on distancing in the workplace, which is also relevant for volunteers engaged in key services (see also volunteer section below) https://www.hse.gov.uk/news/social-distancing-coronavirus.htm

There is wider advice covering a variety of topics, including workplace PPE here: https://www.hse.gov.uk/news/coronavirus.htm?utm_source=hse.gov.uk&utm_medium=refferal&utm_campaign=coronavirus&utm_term=covid-landing&utm_content=home-page-popular

Volunteering

The National Council of Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) has published easy to understand advice on maintaining safety and distancing while volunteering here: https://www.ncvo.org.uk/ncvo-volunteering/i-want-to-volunteer/volunteering-coronavirus

and have produced a useful PDF download for briefing organisations

Lambeth has produced this PDF download on volunteering

Register with Lambeth for volunteering donating food, money, and keeping safe here: https://www.lambeth.gov.uk/forms/volunteer-to-help-your-community

Advice on volunteering at the Lambeth Food Hub is here

NHS Volunteer Responders

delivering medicines from pharmacies;
driving patients to appointments;
bringing them home from hospital;
or making regular phone calls to check on people isolating at home.

– Due to the level of interest, new applications have been paused, but check the website for updates: https://www.goodsamapp.org/NHS

Lambeth Fund for VCS Organisations

Lambeth Council are providing one-off payments of up to £10k to help voluntary and community organisations. This is being funded from part of the Community Infrastructure Levy collected on new building developments. The aim is to make communities more resilient both during the crisis and in the recovery period that should follow. The one exclusion is for food-related projects, where the Council is making a separate funding contribution. Organisations must be Lambeth-based with an existing bank account and a written constitution.If you have not already received a notice with a link to the simple application form, contact eoin.heffernan@integrateagency.co.uk

Other Coronavirus-related Grants

Our friends at Age UK Lambeth recommend this web-page for a wide range of sources for community organisations, regularly updated: https://www.grantsonline.org.uk/coronavirus.html If you are in business, you ought to be checking the regular bulletins from the Brixton BID, but there’s a guide to applying for a Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan at www.knowyourmoney.co.uk DSC advise us that charities are also eligible for this.

Staying at home

Summary of information and tips from Lamtheth Talk PDF

News – get facts from the government website http://www.gov.uk/coronavirus

Stress – take sufficient rest, eat properly, do some physical activity and keep in touch with family and friends http://nhs.uk/oneyou/ every-mind-matters/coronaviruscovid-19-anxiety-tips

Routine – follow usual routine as much as possible and don’t overwork https://www.good-thinking.uk/

Keep active – Build in physical activity into your day, remembering that dancing, cleaning your home, and seated exercises also count https://www.sportengland.org/news-and-blogs

Being alone – do things to boost your mood if things are too quiet for your liking https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/coronavirus/coronavirus-and-your-wellbeing/

Church and Mosque at home

Information for staying connected and online services:

Church of England – Southwark Diocese list of local churches with online offer https://southwark.anglican.org/churchonline/

Catholic Diocese of Southwark – http://www.rcsouthwark.co.uk

New Testament – https://ntcgbrixton.org

Advice from the Muslim Council https://mcb.org.uk/general/ramadan2020_guidance/

Art, Culture and History at Home

Lambeth Library services available on-line, see the website, www.lambeth.gov.uk/LibraryServicesOnline for general information. See this here for updates and links for online events. If you don’t have a library membership, to access the full range, you can sign up on-line at www.lambeth.gov.uk/jointhelibrary

Lambeth Local History talks online – Weekly topics have now been announced up to the end of May. Capacity has been upgraded to cope with audiences of over 100 people. The talks are also being recorded so they will be viewable on Instagram if you miss them. To book a place for the live version for a session, e-mail archives@lambeth.gov.uk to receive the Zoom log-in details

Get your art at home – our guide to what the galleries (local and around the world) are offering online: http://www.brixtonneighbourhoodforum.org/?p=338

London history in cinema – This link has old documentaries about London in iPlayer https://londonist.com/london/film/iplayer

Art4Space has been busy adapting to the new situation, in the hope of opening the Centre soon in a new safer format. They are also contributing to the BBC’s Get Creative at Home. And do have a look at Louise’s video demonstrations, refreshed every 2 weeks. See the website for more – www.art4space.co.uk

Living History – We are unwittingly living through a key time in the course of world events. Lambeth Archives would like to capture the moment by getting help with collecting items that shows life in Lambeth during the lockdown period – full details at: https://www.lambethlocalhistoryforum.org.uk

Theatre – This page has links to a variety of online theatre performances https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/mar/17/hottest-front-room-seats-the-best-theatre-and-dance-to-watch-online

Greenspaces – and green fingers

Social distance in parks – jog responsibly!

Friends of Brockwell Park are encouraging park users to follow these guidelines to maintain social distance within the Park , which has been very busy on recent occasions. These apply across walkers, pram pushers, wheelchair users, runners and cyclists.

Move around the park on the left-hand side of the path, keeping 2m behind the person in front. Most paths are wide enough for you to stay 2m clear of people approaching from the other direction.

Overtake to your left, on the grass, keeping 2m clear of others.

If there is no space to the left, only use the opposite lane if this is clear of other users. Do not walk, run or cycle between the two lanes, to maintain that 2m clearance. That may mean joggers running on the spot until a safe space opens up, or cyclists dismounting, but please keep a safe distance.

Discover other green spaces

Why not ring the changes and explore some other open spaces on our patch? I have just heard from a Town Centre resident who has discovered Myatt’s Fields Park for the first time. Far fewer people know about the Loughborough Park open space – there is far more to it than a disused adventure playground. You might think that Trinity Gardens, Blenheim Gardens and Wyck Gardens are too small to bother with, but at least the walk there will vary your exercise routine. And with less traffic on the roads, a woodland walk through Brixton Orchard and Rush Common finally becomes worth tackling.

Grow at Home

Community gardening efforts are rather limited right now, but have not stopped completely. Advice on volunteering on food growing projects is here

Brockwell Park Community Greenhouses are running some “remote” sessions including Gardeners Question Time, Fermentation classes, Story Stompers and a Singing Group. They also have some young soft fruit bushes, grown from cuttings, for sale at £5 each. For details of all these, see their website, wwwbrockwellgreenhouses.org.uk/events/

Myatt’s Fields Park has a free seedlings scheme to help local people grow their own food at home. This applies to residents of Coldharbour and Vassall wards More details at www.myattsfieldspark.info/free-seedlings.html They have also highlighted the Lambeth Larder website for great tips on food growing, recipes and saving money. See www.lambethlarder.org

If you are an experienced grower, Incredible Edible Lambeth are looking for people to start vegetable seedlings at home and then share with the community. See https://www.incedibleediblelambeth.org/news/growing-veg-for-your-community/

Shopping

One of the positive things is that we seem to be falling back in love with our corner shops. Brixton Local is website that list details of local independent shops that remain open for business, including food outlets with takeaway service https://www.brixtonlocal.life/

Brixton Blog has a roundup of food and drink outlets here: https://brixtonblog.com/2020/05/take-it-away-brixton/

The big stores currently operate revised opening times with special times for vulnerable and key workers – please check their websites for all details, as they vary over bank holiday weekends. The general pattern for Tesco Acre Lane and Sainsbury’s Tulse Hill is:

NHS / Social care workers: Mon-Sat 7.30-8am at Sainsbury’s, Sun/Tue/Thu 9-10am at Tesco

Elderly, vulnerable and carers: Mon/Wed/Fri 8-9am at Sainsbury’s and Mon/Wed/Fri 9-10am at Tesco

Brixton Market has remained open, for food stalls only, with a more spacious layout. Mon-Sat 8am-6pm (Weds ’til 3pm)

More shops are getting ready to re-open in June. What can we expect?

Brixton Business Improvement District has issued advice on the preparations that shops and businesses need to make here: https://www.brixtonbid.co.uk/getting-your-business-ready/?mc_cid=1abc54c4f6

Remember to keep 2m away from other people when shopping

Crime Resources

Domestic Abuse – links and advice

If in danger, call the national helpline 0800 2000 247 https://www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk/ (In severe / immediately life threatening situations only: call 999 followed by a cough or tapping 55 to activate a tracing service)

Metropolitan Police advice – https://www.met.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/c19/coronavirus-covid-19/domestic-abuse/

The Gaia Centre gives Lambeth residents free, confidential, practical and emotional support by phone or email – whatever’s safest – 020 7733 8724 (Mon-Fri 9am-5pm) email lambethvawg@refuge.org.uk

Scams and cybercrime

The National Cyber Security Centre has recently removed thousands of online scams and hundreds of fake shops selling Covid related items. They have set up a national service for reporting online scams: email to report@phishing.gov.uk

Further advice on avoiding cybercrime

https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/news/public-urged-to-flag-covid-19-threats-new-campaign

https://www.met.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/fa/fraud/personal-fraud/

Coronavirus Statistics

World Health Organization Situation Reports https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/situation-reports

Worldometer counts – This site tracks population statistics from governments around the world, including of the pandemic https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

UK Government data, with regional and local authority area statistics – https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/

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