"Fantastic uprising of good neighbourliness" during lockdown, says Sheffield Council

Sheffield Council says there has been a ‘fantastic uprising of good neighbourliness’ during the coronavirus outbreak with people rallying around to help each other.

Sara Storey, from the council, said: “There has been fantastic community support with the response from volunteers to help their neighbours and to look out for each other.

“A lot of people haven't ended up needing statutory services, because we have seen a fantastic uprising of neighbourliness, which I hope will continue.

“There has been lots of thinking and talking about meeting people's needs differently. It's more difficult for people to go out if they are shielding, or at high risk.

“A lot of people have had shopping brought by volunteers, family or friends, so care providers can meet the most essential needs."

Ms Storey said some groups had seen an advantage to holding online meetings, rather than gathering in person.

She said: “The autism partnership board meetings were online and members said they felt communication through virtual means was better for their mental health, because some pressure and social norms had been reduced

“The board agreed not to go back to physical meetings, so for some people this has been a positive and allowed us to think differently.”

Coun Jayne Dunn told a scrutiny meeting: "Community groups are ringing people on a daily basis and they know these people and can tell by the tone of their voice if something isn't right. This information is filtering in and needs to be strengthened."

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