District Council to act as hub for community support efforts during coronavirus epidemic

The hub will be the first point of contact for communities and individuals sharing or requiring information about COVID-19.

Dedicated phone lines and an email address will go live tomorrow (Saturday) at 8am and will see 13 SKDC staff working in partnership with the Community and Volunteer Cell of the Lincolnshire Resilience Forum to provide help and advice to thousands of local people.

Phones will be staffed between 8am and 10pm, seven days a week, responding to requests for help or information from people who are vulnerable or need assistance because of age or ill-health.

The dedicated numbers are 01476 406177 and 01476 406358 and the email address is [email protected]

Coun Kelham Cooke said: “Our community hub is designed to be at the very heart of helping residents during the Coronavirus epidemic.

“We know that there is already great work being done by community groups, and we want to hear from everyone involved in doing that. It allows us to put people who need help in touch with those who can offer it.

“It’s vital that we all work together during this emergency situation and we will be doing our very best to support everyone across the district in these extremely difficult times.”

SKDC would like to hear from all mutual aid groups, community groups, individuals, organisations and Town and Parish Councils in the district that are offering community support during periods of social distancing and self-isolation.

Information will then be shared with the Lincolnshire Resilience Forum to produce a comprehensive list of available support as the cell responds to Government directives.

The cell will channel information from Trading Standards and Lincolnshire Police on potential scams and exploitation of vulnerable individuals, and offer advice on the need for vetting of volunteers.