Local hospitals have put out a call to arms for volunteers to sign up and support their NHS.

University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) is keen to recruit as many volunteers as possible to assist during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The trust runs Westmorland General Hospital, Furness General Hospital and the Royal Lancaster Infirmary.

Forty seven people have already volunteered and the majority have been cleared to work.

Barry Rigg, head of patient experience at UHMBT, said: “We want to express our sincere thanks to each and every one of our volunteers for stepping forward during such a difficult time.

“We have had a large number of volunteer partner organisations come forward to support the NHS within one of our Community Recovery Centres at Barrow in Furness or Kendal.

"The public is right to be proud of you all – and we echo that sentiment.

“Advice has been issued already, but to reiterate, if you need to self-isolate or ‘shield’ yourself, then you should stay at home.”

Members of the public are welcome to apply to volunteer at UHMBT through the Trust’s ‘Helping Hands’ scheme.

NHS colleagues from the Patient Experience and Employment Service teams at UHMBT will contact you to ask a few simple questions once you have registered.

If you still wish to progress with your NHS volunteering application form then the team will advise you of the next steps.

The Tfust has drafted the application form with the current Covid-19 situation in mind and will look at all interests and offers.

Any concerns about safety in relation to COVID-19 can be discussed when you are contacted by a member of the team.

Volunteer support is welcomed on hospital wards and at the trust’s Community Recovery Centres in Kendal and Barrow. Volunteer health care professionals with an active registration or with an inactive registration are also welcome to apply.

Anyone symptom-free and over the age of 18 can apply.

People over the age of 70 can volunteer, however, they should bear in mind the Government directive to stay home.

To apply for UHMBT’s Helping Hands scheme, please go to: http://www.justr.com/enquire/volunteer/

People can also volunteer through ‘Support Cumbria’; an official collaboration of partners across Cumbria working together to provide community support to residents and organisations that are struggling to access basic or essential services during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

Support Cumbria has a central database of potential volunteers in Cumbria who have registered their interest in signing up for volunteering opportunities during Covid-19.

If you are interested in volunteering for the NHS in Cumbria, please head to the web address below and then someone from the team will contact you.

In addition, if you select to volunteer for other areas of volunteering, as and when new volunteering opportunities are identified, you can be notified.

All volunteers will be asked to complete a health self-assessment form.

To find out more and to volunteer in Cumbria, please go to this link: https://supportcumbria.org.uk/

NHS England and NHS Improvement is also encouraging health and social care professionals to use the ‘NHS Volunteer Responders’ scheme to refer people who are vulnerable and at risk for support in their communities.

Health and social care professionals can now refer vulnerable people who are staying at home for support from the NHS Volunteer Responders for: medicine and grocery deliveries, lifts to appointments and check in and chat telephone support.

Please go to this link to refer a vulnerable person: https://www.goodsamapp.org/NHSreferral