‘We’re all humans and had to help each other’ - how mutual aid groups have changed since March

A lot of the groups are still working on other projects, or ready to start back up again should they be needed.

Sonja, one of the initial founders of Horsted Helpers who worked with nine volunteers, said how the ‘amazing’ village now has a network of volunteers that spans across the generations.

She said: ”The need for the group then almost evaporated overnight when the lockdown eased, but recently we’ve been looking into how to help those who have lost income this year, like families who are reliant on jobs like cleaning, babysitting and other part time and less secure work.

“We’re collecting donations for food banks, including nice things and toys so families can have presents for kids, and we’re very lucky because there are a lot of groups and community-organised projects.

“Horsted Helpers has brought a much broader group of the village into that helping community.

“The network is set up so it’s easy to engage the volunteer network in a way that we couldn’t before.

“This group is across the village, from young mums to teenagers to those who are older and retired who were involved in the early days.”

Kieran James, who organised Burgess Hill Helper Army, said how the group quickly realised they needed a buddy service for people who were lonely and vulnerable.

With his DBS-checked team, they received calls all day long across two phone lines.

He said: “If someone sounded like they could use a phone call once a week we passed them on to the team, but we mentioned it to everyone.