Chester Race Company Launch Foodbank Drop Off Place and Donate £1,000 of Food Items to Those in Need
See updated statement from Richard Thomas, Chief Executive, Chester Race Company:
It is with great regret that I announce that we have been forced to suspend food production in respect of the NHS and emergency workers free meal service, due to launch tomorrow.
A member of the production team has displayed some symptoms of coronavirus in the past 24 hours and as a precautionary measure, we have been forced to place the entire cooking operation into isolation for 14 days. This includes members of our front of house team who were due to distribute meals to workers on arrival to the racecourse.
We are truly sorry to have to announce that the racecourse site will go into full lock down from today to protect members of our workforce and members of the public visiting site – this includes those that were due to visit us tomorrow to collect a free meal under the new scheme.
We will be looking at other ways in which we can help in the near future.
The funds raised to date via our Just Giving page, set up to support this initiative, will now go direct to The Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
My deepest gratitude goes out all those dealing directly with the on-going crisis.
Yours in appreciation,
Richard Thomas
Chester Race Company have today announced that they will join the newly launched Coordinated Community Response, so that staff can play their part in helping local communities respond to the recent COVID-19 developments.
In collaboration with Cheshire West Voluntary Action, Cheshire West and Chester Council and other voluntary groups, local residents can register their interest in supporting members of the local community who may need extra help in the coming weeks and months.
Chester Race Company are pledging their support to the initiative by providing a drop off place at their on-site hotel; Holiday Inn Express at Chester Racecourse. The food will be given to West Cheshire Foodbank, as part of their efforts to help the most vulnerable people in the Borough. From Friday 20 March, members of the public can donate non-perishable food items such as dried goods and tins to those in need.
Race Company members of staff will be working with West Cheshire Foodbank to ensure that donations can be distributed to those in social isolation or crisis.
To launch the drop off place, Chester Race Company have donated £1,000 worth of much needed food items. You can read more about the types of food you can donate online at westcheshire.foodbank.org.uk/. The drop off place will be open between the hours of 9am – 9pm.
For those unable to visit the drop off place in person, Chester Race Company have also set up a Just Giving page through which members of the public can donate whatever they can afford to support. Any monetary donation great or small will be welcomed and will go straight to West Cheshire Foodbank. Visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/wcfb for more information and to donate.
In partnership with local charities like SHARE, Chester Race Company staff have been supporting homelessness initiatives for the past couple of years. To continue with this work, the race company will be working with member organisations of Outside In, a wider group of organisations that support the Borough’s homeless, to use some of the food donated at the drop off place to create support packages for homeless people who are in self-isolation.
Chief Executive of Chester Race Company, Richard Thomas, said:
“There is a great deal of uncertainty felt around current events and the developing COVID-19 situation. We want to do as much as we can for the most vulnerable groups within our local community by supporting this new coordinated response effort. A coordinated response to the evolving pandemic demonstrates our solidarity as a community. We all have a part to play in protecting our most vulnerable residents and by working together we are stronger.”
Helen Anthony, Vice Chair of Outside In, said:
“It is amazing to see the response of businesses, charities and residents in our area. It is really important that our efforts are coordinated to avoid duplication and to ensure that no community is left behind. The care packages we will be creating for homeless people in self-isolation are a great example of residents, businesses and volunteers working together to meet a specific need.”
An online form has been created for residents to pledge their support for local communities and to help identify activity in different areas as part of the coordinated community response, helping to make sure west Cheshire’s most vulnerable residents have access to things like essential food and medical supplies, as well as somebody to keep in touch with during periods of self-isolation.
If you are a local charity or community group and would like to share your current activities, please email: enquiries@chesterva.org.uk. Other businesses wanting to get involved with the coordinated community response can also email the same address.
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