We know that Local Authorities up-and-down the country are busy assisting residents cope with the Coronvairus outbreak and subsequent shutdown. And that's why the CCA wants to hear from those Council Groups and councillors to find out what you're doing - whether it's a new initiative, community group, or food donation scheme. Likewise, if there's a councillor in your Group who is going above-and-beyond to help their residents, let us know. You can get in touch with your initiatives and nominations by emailing cca@conservatives.com.
Below you'll find a collection of profiles we've collected from submissions by Council Groups and councillors from around the country. We hope you find them useful, and may indeed give you some ideas! Also, keep on coming back as we continue to upload more and more examples!
Bravo to Brentwood on its Covid Response - Leader of the Council, Cllr Chris Hossack, got in touch to share some of the fantastic work the Council have been doing to help local residents, including co-hosting webinars for local businesses with the Chamber of Commerce; the Leader or Chief Executive being a guest on a weekly local radio show to update residents on developments; and printing a borough-wide informational brochure for all residents. To find out more, click here.
Hannan's Herculian Effort in Wilmslow - Wilmslow Town Councillor, Hannan Sarwar, has been busy with a number of community initiatives. Among them includes helping to set-up a 'hot-hub' drive-thru service at Wilmslow Health Centre; co-ordinating efforts at his Association in calling local residents; and beginning a weekly delivery service to hospitals and police stations of hot food and drinks. To find out more, click here.
A Note from Northumberland - Council Leader, Peter Jackson, has written a short note to fellow councillors around the country with what the Council have been doing in Northumberland, including how they have set up a local community hub to administer assistance for residents. You can read it here.
Online Support Group Goes from Strength to Strength - CCA Board Member and Waltham Forest councillor, Selina Seesunkur set-up an online self-help support group at the start of the Coronavirus pandemic. Since then, it has grown to offer support and advice to over a thousand people, with posts on everything from recipes to activities people can do whilst stuck inside. Selina has written about her thoughts on the group's inception and subsequent growth, which you can read here.
Helping Those Hard-to-Reach Residents - Cllr Ari Leitner, who represents Kersal ward on Salford Council, got in touch to let us know about a new initiative he and his ward colleagues have begun, aimed at helping traditionally hard-to-reach residents keep up-to-date with Coronavirus developments. By recording the daily Number 10 press conferences and featuring them on their ward information line, they have managed to assist over 2,000 people who have called the line since it launched a few days ago. For more information on their new initiative, click here.
What's Been Going on in Wirral - Leader of the Wirral Conservative Group, Cllr Ian Lewis, got in touch to let us know about some of the actions the Group have been taken to ensure that local residents are aware of developments. These include taking out a full-page advert to coincide with the Government's local newspaper wrap-around campaign; producing factsheets for councillors and candidates to ensure that they are giving residents the most up-to-date information; and even running a ward-wide children's window poster competition, with numerous categories and plenty of prizes donated by local residents! For more information on what the Group have been doing, check out Cllr Lewis' note.
Speaking to Swindon - Swindon councillor Tim Swinyard has focused part of his work on increasing communication channels with residents to ensure no one is left in the dark about developments during the pandemic, and are able to access the right support. To find out what Cllr Swinyard's work has involved to help residents, click here.
How We're Helping to Keep Runnymede Running - Next up in our Covid-19 Heroes series, Cllr Jonathan Hulley of Runnymede Borough Council, sent us a note to let us know about the Council's Councillor Covid-19 Response Team's work to put together and distribute food packages to the vulnerable across the area. They've even set up their own distribution warehouse! Click here to read the note and find out more.
Great Team Work in Gravesham - Cllr Jordan Meade, Leader of the Conservative Group on Gravesham Council, got in touch to nominate his Group as #Covid19Heroes for all of their hardwork during the ongoing pandemic and lockdon? What have they been up to? Well, they've raised nearly £1,000 for items for local food banks and other local volunteer groups; making daily deliveries to local residents; and have sent out ward-level letters to residents letting them know about help that's available. However, that's not all. You can read the full run-down here.
Tying up the Covid-19 Response in Nottinghamshire - Councillor Kay Cutts MBE, Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, got in touch with us to share some of the fantastic work that the Council are doing to help local residents cope during the current pandemic. In her email, Cllr Cutts said she was incredibly proud of the Council- wide effort in reaction to the pandemic and subsequent lockdown. To find out why, read the full round-up here.
Making It Easier for Local Residents to Help Local Initiatives - Dorset councillor, Tony Ferrari, was helping with a voluntary group in his ward in Weymouth. However, they had a problem. As he wrote in his note, "If a resident requested or needed something that had not been donated, we couldn’t buy it as we didn’t have any money." To assist them, the Council officers signed them up to the Government website that allows individuals to donate to foodbanks - "This means that we can go to residents and ask for donations, which they can make via the website." To read more about how the website has helped the group, click here.
Providing Help, Hope and Food for Endon - Cllr Joe Porter from Staffordshire Moorlands got in touch to tell us what his 'Food for Endon' project, which provides bags of fresh and locally sourced fruit and vegetables to elderly and vulnerable people in Endon and the surrounding visits. Joe also told us about helping to establish a network called 'Help and Hope' to spread positivity and connect people through online friendship. You can found out about both projects and what else Joe has been up to by clicking here.
Helping to Ease the Strain on East Suffolk's Residents During Lockdown - Leader of the Council, Steve Gallant, has updated us on some of the innovative projects the Council have created to help residents. These include the 'Stepping Homes' project to support those who have been identified as having a housing or social that could prevent them form being discharged; adapting councillors' community grants to create a residents' hardship fund and setting up community hubs. You can read the full run-down here.
The Stay at Home Food and Supplies Directory - Cllr Warren Whyte, who represents Buckingham East ward on Buckinghamshire County Council, got in touch to let us know about a directory that he has set up to help residents to find suppliers for their food and essential items during lockdown. You can find out more about the list and how he put it together by clicking here.
Staying in Touch with the Dedicated Phone Line - South Norfolk Council's Cllr James Easter got in touch about the success that he's had in setting-up a dedicated phone number for residents for both information and company. Check out what he had to say here, including about rolling it out elsewhere.
Ready to Go Above and Beyond in Redditch - Cllr Mike Rouse got in touch to let us know about some of the work that his fellow Conservative councillors in Redditch have been up to to help residents. From making scrubs, setting up new charities, to helping on the frontline, click here to find out more!
Time Spent Standing Around Soon Totted Up in Totton - Hampshire County Councillor, Neville Penman, got in touch to let us know about the work he’s been doing with the local Totton isolation group, including maximising volunteers’ time to ensure it’s not wasted on waiting around for things. Check it out here.
Checking in on Businesses in Chiswick - Leader of the Conservative Group on Hounslow Borough Council, Cllr Jo Biddolph wrote to tell us about the work that the Group have been doing to help local businesses on the high street, including managing a mailing list of local businesses to keep them up-to-date with developments, and publishing a list of businesses still operating through lockdown. To read the full recap of the Group's work and what they've been doing to assist local businesses, click here.
