As a local charity, we are doing everything we can to help the most vulnerable in our communities. During COVID-19 our amazing staff and volunteer team have stepped up and worked tirelessly to support those in need. We have delivered over 3200 prescriptions to date, given out food parcels to over 800 families, kept in phone contact with isolated people, assisted with emergency errands, set up a dog walking service and provided practical support and advice. We want to build upon this work to help our community recover and thrive. We have three main areas which funding will go to support: *Community Transport - we will fit perspex screens into our vehicles so that we can keep the passengers and volunteer drivers as safe as possible. *Community Hub - to re-open our building we need to ensure it is COVID safe and ensure everything possible is in place. *Project Coordinator - a 9-month job role to develop and oversee the COVID project services (6 months funding in place).

What we'll deliver:

• A successful crowdfunding campaign
• A Project Coordinator employed
• Community Hub open for social activities
• Community Transport service in operation

Why it's a great idea:

Prior to March 2020 we already knew what a difference our services made to the community but these last few months have shown us just how much people rely on us. This will be a long-term project in response to issues that have been highlighted during this period, but also ones that have been prevalent in Droitwich for a long time. As with many rural areas, access to public transport is often restricted and there is an urgent need for accessible, affordable community activities to improve the mental, physical and emotional well being of the community. Our community transport services will allow isolated residents to access vital medical appointments and social activities. The re-opening of the community hub will allow us to develop new social activities based on building confidence, improving mental health and learning new skills. A coordinator will be able to work with the community to develop these services as needed and recruit new volunteers to help deliver them.

Steps to get it done:

• Community Transport re-commenced
• Volunteer recruitment increased
• Community hub re-opened
• Project Coordinator employed