Social care staff in England can refer anyone who needs to self-isolate to NHS Volunteer Responders.
The scheme was originally set up to support the shielded population, however the recruitment of almost 600,000 volunteers means it has now been widened to support people who are self-isolating, or are vulnerable for another reason (for instance, you have Parkinson’s, Epilepsy or are vulnerable due to a mental health condition)
Services available
Volunteers can provide the following to individuals:
- Friendly ‘check-in and chat’ phone calls.
- Collection service for food, medication and essentials.
- Transport to medical appointments. Note: this is only available where the organisation hosting the appointment can provide PPE to the volunteer driver.
In addition, organisations can arrange for volunteers to deliver supplies between sites by car.
How to refer
You can make direct referrals through the NHS Volunteer Responders referrers’ portal or by calling 0808 196 3382 between 8am and 8pm. Alternatively you can pass on the following self-referral phone number to your clients: 0808 196 3646 between 8am and 8pm.
More information is available here.
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