How can I be a good neighbour during Covid-19?

1. Post cards through your neighbours' door

Our friends at Together Liverpool are promoting postcard resources produced by #ViralKindness (a global movement of care, kindness and mutual support).
The ‘neighbourhood’ postcard has been designed to be used by individuals who are able to offer practical support to their neighbours. Please personalise these postcards with your details and deliver them to (at most!) 20-30 homes near you. This postcard also offers the opportunity for others to join you in helping your local community. You can find and download the postcards here.

2. Set up a Whatsapp group for your street

Post a handwritten notes through every door on your street and invite them to join a Whatsapp group. Some neighbourhoods, who did this in the summer, posted home-schooling tips, offered to go shopping for each other, sent encouraging messages, and shared food deliveries. (Isn’t that amazing?)

Here's an idea of what you could write:

Hello!

Me and my family/housemate(s) live at No. xx.

If you are self isolating and need someone to to run some errands for you or just want to have a friendly phonecall give me a call. We were also thinking of setting up a whatsapp group for the street? Let me know if you'd be interested. Lots of love,

Name, 07xxx xxx xxx

3. Self-isolate if you have symptoms

In a time like this it can feel like you have to be active to be a good neighbour but one of the best ways to serve is to protect your community. The official advice at time of writing is to stay at home if you have either:

• a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
• a loss of, or change to, your sense of smell or taste

Check the GOV and NHS websites for the most accurate and up-to-date information.

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus

4. Remember volunteering guidelines

Nottingham CVS are working with Nottingham City Council and other partners to promote safe volunteering practices in relation to helping people who are self-isolating during the COVID-19 outbreak, see guidelines below.

1) When you already know the person that you are helping and they know you

You can safely make a mutual agreement to provide whatever help you both feel comfortable with. However,

• Wherever possible, please try to maintain at least six feet of separation between you and the person you are helping
• Make sure to wash your hands for 20 seconds using soap and water or hand sanitiser (if soap isn't available), before and after any visit or support activity, after you blow your nose, cough or sneeze and before you eat or handle food

2) If you would like to help, but don't already know the person you are helping well enough

We would encourage anyone wanting to volunteer their help to set this up through an established voluntary/community group. This is important both for the safety of the volunteer and the person being supported.

If you are a VCSE sector organisation who would like to discuss best practice guidance in relation to volunteering, we would be happy to help, please contact davet@nottinghamcvs.co.uk

Before using these resources we would encourage churches to consider: How are other churches and charities operating in our area offering support during this time? Can we work together? Is the #viralkindess movement an appropriate and sustainable way for us to offer support to our community?

If you have any ideas that you've tried and think we should add to this post email sue@transformingnottstogether.org.uk

Let's continue to learn from each other!