Last night the three group leaders on the City Council joined together to pass the following motion:

Thanks To All Key Workers and Volunteers

On behalf of the people of Worcester, Council wishes to express its heartfelt thanks to all NHS staff, all other key workers, including city council staff, and all who volunteered, for their unstinting service throughout the Coronavirus pandemic and asks the Managing Director to identify ways in which civic leaders can recognise the exceptional contribution all key workers and volunteers have made to the city’s wellbeing during these unprecedented times.

In co-proposing the motion I said:

“The peak of the first wave of the pandemic seems in many way to be a long time ago now. Back in March and April there was a constant worry about hospitals and care homes running out of PPE. Many members of staff were worried about catching coronavirus or bringing the virus back to their own families – despite the shortages of PPE they worked long shifts coving other people who had become sick to keep us and our loved ones safe – they are truly NHS heroes.

The NHS staff were perhaps the most visible in the media headlines but there were many other unseen heroes working in the background. The list is long but it includes those working in care, those working in food distribution and many of our own staff that kept the bins being emptied.

I’d also like to thank members of the public who volunteered for the county Here2Help service or worked in local initiatives to help their nearest neighbours who were self-isolating get food or to collect prescriptions.

Lastly, I’d like to thank everyone who helped with a massive drive to collect food for Worcester’s foodbank. Demand has been increasing over many years but the financial shock imposed on many people with low and or precarious incomes has increased the pressure on the foodbank still further. I know that many communities have organised street by street food collections – thank you to everyone who gave food and thankyou to the people who organised the street collections.”

Cllr Louis Stephen, Green Party Group Leader.