Lockdown and self-isolation has meant that Splott Community Volunteers hasn’t been able to operate in its usual fashion, but that hasn’t stopped the powerhouse team behind this organisation providing food, toys and support to some of the most vulnerable people in our area.
Founding member, Angela Bullard, told Inksplott how the group has adapted to keep on helping people during these testing times:
“Fred is shielding at the moment because his medication has suppressed his immune system, so we have been unable to collect food as we normally do for Breakfast Club. What we did was to bring home all the ambient food we had at our three venues and I have been taking out food bags and dropping them off on doorsteps before jumping back in the car to my trusty hand gel! Fortunately, Tesco at Pengam Green had been very generous with tinned foods just recently and Co-Op Splott Road has been fantastic.”
There is lots of help available out there with food parcels, so Splott Community Volunteers has concentrated on those who were unable to access it for some reason. Some of the people they have helped have been:
• A young mum with two children, moved suddenly with no notice from a hostel into an empty house. She is frightened to take the children out and, following recent domestic violence, had no other support. Angela took her food, toys and crafts for the children and arranged further support from other groups such as Salvation Army, etc.
• A young man, his wife and child, and his mother, who were all asked to leave his father’s house late at night and have not been able to collect the family’s belongings. He is staying with relatives but has no resources as he was due to start a new job just as lockdown was announced. Food and toys were gratefully received.
• A lady, shielding, who was burgled and lost not only her money but phone, etc., leaving her unable to contact anyone for assistance. Again, Angela took her food and arranged support.
• A couple of nurses who had been sent home to self-isolate as they were displaying signs of the virus after nursing patients in Intensive Care. They were unable to shop for additional provisions first and were struggling to get slots for food deliveries. Splott Comm Vols supplied enough to get these families through until food deliveries were arranged.
• A gentleman who had minimum supplies and is unable to shop as he is expecting to be admitted to hospital for major surgery, currently postponed of course.
These are just some of the people Angela has been delivering to, as well as ensuring the organisation’s own vulnerable volunteers and others have sufficient for their needs.
Angela had high praise for Co-Op Splott Road and the generous people of Splott:
“The Co-op are also one of our supporting supermarkets and Tom from the Splott Road shop rang me last week to suggest that he would like to start a food bank in the front of the store and, knowing our situation regarding food collections and shielding, would deliver the donated food to my home so that we can carry on helping people. The lovely people of Splott did not disappoint! As you saw from my post on Facebook, they very generously donated items that the needy will find extremely useful.
“If people can afford to just donate one item per week into Tom’s foodbank, it will make a huge difference to others who find themselves in very difficult, and unexpected, circumstances.”
Oasis Cardiff
Splott-based Oasis Cardiff, a centre supporting asylum seekers and refugees in Wales, has also been delivering food parcels daily to its members and vulnerable people and have launched a silent auction to raise money towards providing ongoing support.
Read more about the auction and the work of the group here: https://www.inksplott.co.uk/an-oasis-for-people-in-need/
To bid in the silent auction, support Oasis and bag yourself a brilliant prize, click here: https://www.jumblebee.co.uk/oasiscardiffsilentauction
Moorland STAR
Moorland STAR Community Centre has been supporting over 55s in Splott for decades and lockdown hasn’t deterred them either. The team at Moorland deliver home-cooked meals to older people on a daily basis, with support from businesses such as the Wales Millennium Centre and Splott Nisa on Carlisle Street; another fantastic business that strives to help the community in which it lives.
Find out more about the work that Moorland STAR does and how you can support here: https://www.facebook.com/pg/moorlandcommunitycentre/about/
With incredible people showing such altruism and community spirit, it makes you darned proud to live in Splott!