A SUPPORT group whose good work was put at risk when its unpaid founders were called back to their paid work is still alive and kicking – after kind-hearted volunteers stepped up to lend a hand.

Drumchapel Covid-19 Mutual Aid has helped more than 500 people in the area access food, prescriptions and white goods – and offered a buddy system for people struggling with mental health.

Set up at the start of lockdown, it was fronted by local dad Tony Crawford and benefited from the help of some 100 volunteers.

We told readers last week how Tony had returned to full time work, handing over the role of lead coordinator to local Councillor Elspeth Kerr.

Within days, Cllr Kerr had realised the increase in workload was not manageable and told volunteers and the community that the group could no longer provide support.

However, Tony was quickly inundated with offers of help to keep the project going.

Now, the group will be managed by five coordinators, who were previously involved with the scheme and had built strong professional relationships with elderly, sick and isolated Drumchapel residents, and led by Claire McDonald.

Claire said: “I felt it was a real shame to think all the support would be stopped.

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“It’s obvious to me and others how much he did, and there is so much more still to do.

“This virus isn’t going anywhere and the need for the group is as vital as ever.

“We will be offering the exact same service, and hopefully will continue to provide the support with as much success.

“I understand the reasoning behind asking those who had benefited from our service to reach out to similar charities, but it probably took a lot for people to give us a call and ask for help.

“They might not want to ask again, and reaching out to strangers is intimidating – whereas they already have a relationship with the support workers who have visited them over the fast months.”

As a mother of two who works in a children’s residential care unit, Claire struggled knowing people were in desperate need of the continued support and many of them are struggling to feed their family, or have no family at all.

She said: “We have seen how much Covid-19 Mutual Aid has helped in Drumchapel and I would hate to think one of my kids needed that support and no one was helping.

“With the group already set up and resources in place, I knew I could manage to coordinate it so that’s why me and a few others came forward.”

“Volunteers will continue to visit in pairs, usually a male and female, and will wear PPE and take precautionary measures as they have previously done.”