Thursday 21-05-2020 - 10:00

Students at the University of Bristol have donated time and energy as they volunteer to support the local community during the COVID-19 outbreak. 

Bristol Students’ Union supports a number of volunteering projects led by students who have stepped up to the challenge during the current pandemic to bring help to those in need. 

Undergraduate students Jack Elliott, Tom Steggall, Immy Ireland, Ameya Vikram and Lee D’Arcy are all part of the student group 180 Degrees Consulting and have set up the COVID-19 Student Response Network (CSRN).  

The scheme aims to connect hundreds of student volunteers with up to 30 local charities by working with the local government and organisations such as the Quartet Community Foundation. Student will offer valuable support to charities such as fundraising, social media and digitization of services. 

Tom Steggall, Executive Director of 180 Degrees Consulting Bristol, the student group organising CSRN, said:  

“By engaging the student population, we hope to orchestrate a mass attempt at supporting the organisations that do so much for our local community. Having founded the initiative as a way of supporting Bristol-based charities, we have been overwhelmed with the level of interest and we are excited to have partnered with several of the UK's top universities in rolling the scheme out nationally.” 

They are not alone in their efforts to support the local community.  Bristol Paws Project, which helps those from disadvantaged backgrounds care for their pets, has donated a significant amount of stored food to a charity which has had to foster out all of its dogs during the pandemic. 

Pitstop and Bristol PHAB, groups which both work with disabled young people, have sent activity packs to the families they usually support which were created by WECIL (West of England Centre for Inclusive Living) as they are currently unable to carry out their usual activity. 

Bristol SU’s Care Leavers and Estranged Students Network has been supporting students by packaging and delivering 45 COVID-19 care packages for members of the network during lockdown. The network has also collaborated with Bristol Islamic Society to host virtual Iftar meals for students during Ramadan. 

Sam Budd, Chief Executive of Bristol Students’ Union, said: 

‘Bristol SU has a long tradition of community volunteering in Bristol. It is inspiring to see how our students continue to demonstrate their commitment to the wider Bristol community through their contribution to a collective volunteering response to this extraordinary crisis.’  

Bristol SU has also led two foodbank collection drives for the new Emergency Foodbank in Redcliffe and has opened two collection points in student halls of residence. So far students have donated over 50kg of food, cleaning products and toiletries to the new foodbank at Redcliffe. 

Over 50 students have signed up to support other students and those in the local community who are currently struggling. If you feel like you could benefit from some support you can fill in the form: bristolsu.org.uk/askforhelp