Connect with your local community during COVID-19

With everyone trying to find the balance between staying at home and 'getting back to normal', there has never been a more important time to try and stay connected to your local community during a national lockdown.

We need to look after each other

Everybody needs to pull together if we’re going to get through this epidemic. You don’t need lots of money or time, every little bit of help will be appreciated in your local community. Here’s some ideas on how to help:

• Going shopping? Consider picking up an extra few tins of food or other items to leave on your elderly neighbor’s doorstep or to donate to your local food bank. Don’t confuse this with panic buying – only put a reasonable amount in your basket.
• Small and local businesses will undoubtedly suffer during these times. Support those around you by checking in on them on social media and helping them where you can. Simply buying takeaway food from restaurants that are offering takeaways under the guidance or purchasing gift vouchers to use at a later date can be a big help.

Check on the most vulnerable in your local community during COVID-19

The elderly, those with pre-existing conditions and people who have COVID-19 will likely be worried. Here’s some things you can do to help without ever coming into direct contact with anyone:

• Think about neighbors, friends, family and others in your community who could be feeling particularly isolated. Send them a message, call them for a chat or get them on a video call to see if they are feeling okay.
• According to Age UK, more than 2 million older people live alone and struggle to ask for help, even without these special measures being in place. Have a think of the people community you can reach out to who could be feeling like this and ask if they need any help.

How to reach out to people you don’t know

If you don’t have any elderly or vulnerable relatives or friends who need any help but still want to do your part, there are lots of ways to reach out to your local community during COVID-19. Read about some here:

• Covid Mutual Aid UK has been set up by a group of volunteers to help people support their local communities throughout the COVID-19 outbreak. They focus on providing resources and connecting people to their nearest local groups, those in need and willing volunteers. It’s a great starting point to see who needs help around you.
• Whether you’re new to your neighborhood or haven’t formed connections with your local community, you may feel like you can’t reach out. But you can. A lady from Cornwall has come up with a way to help the vulnerable who don’t use social media or the internet by using postcards. Use this postcard template or make your own to offer help with shopping, posting mail, urgent supplies, or simply a good old chat!

Don’t forget to look after yourself

You won’t be much help to your local community if you don’t look after yourself properly! Read our FAQs on how to stay safe and make sure you’re doing everything you can to minimise the risk of you and the people around you falling ill. It’s a fast-moving situation, so make sure you keep yourself updated on government advice by visiting gov.uk/coronavirus so we can all pull together and stay as safe as possible. Stay in touch with your community, keep yourself healthy, and try as much as possible look at the positives. It’s times like these that really bring us together and remind us of what really matters. Last updated: 05 January 2021