Last week, the Circle Bath Hospital went above and beyond to help the community during the national lockdown. On top of providing the highest levels of patient care for both private and NHS patients, it’s in house catering team organised and provided an additional 25 meals for vulnerable men and women experiencing homelessness in Bath.
The nutritious meals featured a main course, with vegetarian option and a dessert and were delivered to accommodation sites provided by charity Julian House.
Business Development Lead at Circle Bath Sam Harrison said:
“The pandemic has been a challenging for everyone but arguably more so for those already experiencing hardship. As the pandemic continues, there are likely bigger increases in the number of people who are experiencing homelessness for the first time, people who have been furloughed and those who are newly unemployed.
Last year our Circle Bath Hospital successfully supported over 11,200 NHS Outpatient and Diagnostic appointments. Whilst also completing the care pathways for over 3,200 NHS admissions amid the pandemic. The core principle of our organisation is to care for those in need and it is our mission to make people better. We strive to always do the right thing and this includes expanding our support outside of the hospital and into our community.
We have a long-established partnership with Julian House and throughout the pandemic our staff have continued to make regular item donations.
It is our pleasure to uphold our annual hot meal donation to our Julian House clients. Now more than ever it is critical that businesses and communities come together to support those less fortunate.”
Cecil Weir, Fundraising and PR Director at Julian House added: “Circle Bath have been great supporters over many years – always keen to understand how best they can help at any given time. This latest gesture is a perfect example. Cooking facilities for many of the ex-rough sleepers that we are housing during the pandemic are fairly basic. Circle Bath agreed to provide a complete meal for 25 residents – all that was necessary was reheating. This ensured that they had a nutritious dinner.
We would always encourage organisations to strike up a dialogue with any good cause that they are thinking about supporting and asking them what they need – rather than delivering what the supporter thinks they need. Huge thanks to the team at Circle Bath.”
With the continuing national lockdown, many people in Julian House’s accommodation sites are experiencing further feelings of isolation and desolation. The charity has been providing extra bed spaces since mid-November so that no one has to sleep rough during the coldest months of the year. At the same time, it is carrying on its essential support work virtually and in ways that are COVID safe.
