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Apr 2020

Ripon

Donation of material by Ripon City Council supports the fight against coronavirus

Published: 29 Apr 2020, 09:21 BST

by Tim Flanagan

Although Ripon Town Hall is in lockdown, and the City Council has not held a meeting since March, councillors voted remotely to support the donation of £1,200 worth of material.

ripon-23rd-april-2020-mayor-cllr-eamon-parkin

Ripon City Council has responded to the coronavirus crisis by buying £1,200 worth of material and sewing equipment for use in the production of scrubs and other items for frontline healthcare workers.

The council is currently in isolation and town clerk Paula Benson, contacted all 12 councillors - who unanimously agreed to the purchase of the material. It's now been supplied to an army of volunteers across the Harrogate district involved in making the items that include masks, sets of scrubs and scrubs bags.

The material and sewing equipment was purchased respectively from local suppliers Reynard Fabrics of Scotton and White Rose Sewing and Craft Centre, Harrogate.

The Mayor of Ripon and chair of the council, Councillor Eamon Parkin (above) , told The Stray Ferret:

"The city council is delighted to support healthcare workers in this way and we pay tribute to the many volunteers, working in their homes, who have collaborated to make items that are vital in our collective fight against coronavirus."

He added:

"The council is in harmony with the community in Ripon and I am proud by the response that residents have made through numerous acts of kindness - from active involvement in the production and delivery of PPE, to shopping and the collection of medicines for people who are in self-isolation in their homes. Whenever there is a need, you can count on the people of Ripon to rise to the occasion. This has been the toughest challenge we have ever faced, but we will win, if everybody in every community, continues to pull together."

Cllr Parkin, whose own business - The Magdalens Pub - is currently closed, has turned the premises into a community hub, delivering shopping and vital items to residents in isolation in the Hospital of St Mary Magdalene Almshouses and to local care homes.

Earlier this month, in a Stray Ferret article, Ripon City and Harrogate district councillor Pauline McHardy, who worked as a nurse in the NHS for 41 years, expressed concern about the shortage of PPE for healthcare workers.

She said:

"With fellow councillors, I am absolutely delighted to support funding for these essential items."