The Royston vs Coronavirus support group is back providing vulnerable members of the community with extra help, now the second wave of coronavirus has taken hold and government restrictions have tightened.

Dave Carter started the group back in March before the first lockdown – his army of volunteers were on hand to help those either shielding or in need in some way when the COVID-19 crisis began, and the help proved vital to so many.

The scheme took more than 800 calls from the community – who needed help with food shopping, collecting prescriptions and more – before it halted at the beginning of September, as coronavirus cases decreased over the summer and government restrictions eased. It started up again this week.

Dave told the Crow: “We decided to ‘furlough’ the group in September, on the basis that it could be resurrected like a phoenix rising from the ashes

“We hoped with optimism that we wouldn’t be needed, but we felt it would be unrealistic that we wouldn’t be needed in some shape or form.

“Last week we decided to reiniate it, in a slightly different form.

“Last time the government wasn’t taking action and it was up to groups like ourselves to fill the gap. Coronavirus is no longer new and fortunately there is help in place but think there still will be demand. There is a group of very vulnerable people, often very elderly and very lonely living on our doorstep in Royston and surrounding villages. We want to be there for the people who need it.

“It’s a lighter version of what we had earlier in the year. We have a smaller but even more dedicated team who are willing to help.

“We are going to try to stick to business hours, 9am to 5pm. Call handlers will take the calls and will assess the need.

“We are not a free of charge delivery service, we are there to help those in need. We have four co-ordinators, and 40 volunteers who have pledged their support to do whatever is required.

“Our motto is if we all do a little it’s going to be far more effective than a few people doing a lot.”

If you need support from the Royston vs Coronavirus team, call 07973 853065 email RoystonvsCoronavirus@gmail.com, or search ‘Royston vs Coronavirus’ on Facebook.