Kris Healey, CEO of the registered charity Spadework is sounding calm as ever:

‘We have been trying to carry on all our activities as much as possible since the outbreak of Covid19 in the UK, trying to create the minimum amount of disruption for our service users, known to us as trainees, who have learning and other disabilities, as well as our loyal customers and supporters, but when Government guidelines on social distancing came into force last week we had to take the decision to ask the trainees to not come into work, we are also running the service predominantly with volunteers in order to keep everybody safe and healthy.

The café is now closed and we have had to stop all community activities. Our income has dropped by 90%, and we are desperately waiting to hear from local Government whether we will keep receiving funding for the community work that we carry out.

The farm shop is still operating, thankfully, and is offering safe call and collect services without the need for customers to leave their car or come into contact with any staff. The farm shop is also offering to vulnerable people a home delivery service at no extra charge. Last week we received a heartbreaking phone call from the @heartofkenthospice. Due to the long hours and late finishing times that their amazing staff are working to help support their wonderful service users, their poor staff were unable to get any fresh fruit or veg from the supermarket as every time they went to the shops the shelves were empty.... So now Spadework is delivering fresh fruit and veg boxes every week to the staff of the HOKH.

Our local community are supporting Spadework and Spadework is supporting our local community!'

For more information on the services offered by Spadework, please go to their website…….

https://spadework.org.uk/