Volunteers supporting frontline staff at Peterborough health trust praised

Over the last year nearly 100 people have stepped forward to help the trust which provides physical health care for older people and those with long-term conditions and mental health services for adults and children.

Louisa Bullivant, voluntary services manager at the CPFT, said: “We can’t thank our volunteers enough for the work they have done.

“Since the beginning of the pandemic people have come forward to offer their help to our staff and teams.

“Their support has been invaluable and everyone at our trust is incredibly grateful.”

People from a diverse range of backgrounds have stepped forward to volunteer including a firefighter, a TV producer who usually works in London, a pharmacist and a number of people who have been furloughed from their jobs and want to support the NHS during the pandemic.

They have undertaken a wide range of duties including administrative tasks, distributing welfare packs from the trust’s Head to Toe Charity and delivering personal protective equipment to the trust teams across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough and places such as Norfolk where CPFT provides eating disorder services.

CPFT chief executive Tracy Dowling said: “The response to the pandemic has been a true team effort by everyone at our trust, and that includes our wonderful volunteers.

“For them to come forward and offer their time to support the work of our teams and services has been humbling and uplifting.”

Tracy and the trust’s chair Julie Spence recently hosted a special online ceremony for volunteers later to thank them for the contribution over the last 12 months.

To find out more about volunteering at CPFT email Louisa via [email protected] or visit the volunteering page of the CPFT website.