Staff from Eden Court Theatre in Inverness hail the community spirit of the public after callers to new Highland Council Covid-19 coronavirus helpline volunteer to help
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
EDEN Court staff who have been manning Highland Council's new coronavirus helpline have praised the volume of callers ringing up to offer help.
Staff from the theatre were redeployed late last month after the Covid-19 lockdown shuttered all entertainment venues for the duration of the crisis.
And they have been overwhelmed by the community-spirit of the callers they have been dealing with.
Lucy McGlennon, Eden Court's head of engagement, has written a blog for the theatre's website in which she has highlighted the work that the team have been doing in their temporary new roles.
"The Engagement Team, an excellent crew of 10 creatives, artists and producers, were deployed almost as soon as Eden Court closed.
"Initially to a new Highland Council Helpline, alongside some of our colleagues from the visitor experience team. The logical thinking at the time was that as we have experience of working in schools, we’d be well suited to help with enquiries of an educational nature.
"Sound logic indeed, and after a few hours of familiarising ourselves with the packs of information we had been given we were ready to go. We helpfully passed on the advice and signposted callers to the relevant services, however, we weren’t exactly inundated with calls – a credit to the Education Service within the council.
"In fact, the highest volume of calls we received in the first few days of the Helpline being live were people volunteering to help – how amazing is that?! I think the volunteers all need capes.
"After a few days of the Helpline being active, it was felt that it could work with reduced staff, and just as well, because the Education Service, now speedily setting up Key Worker Hubs (providing childcare to enable Key Workers to continue with their work) were on the phone looking for a little help; re-deployment was calling!
"As of this week, some of our Producers and Arts Practitioners are making their way round the Highland Key Worker Hubs delivering (socially distanced) dance and drama workshops with the young people there.
"And whilst all of that is going on, we’re working on our first programme of digital creative content that can be shared across Highland for young people and their families to participate in together at home, or indeed for the Hubs to make use of when term resumes on April 13.
"I’m so proud to be part of the resilience response in this way, and I’m proud of my colleagues who are embracing new ways of working every day. Capes for everyone!"
Click here to read more coronavirus news.
