Guidelines for Residents

If you use Tollesbury Volunteers, here are a few things you can expect. We welcome feedback – please do contact us if you can see room for improvement!

SHOPPING

Which shops?

We can shop in the village for you, or with a little notice, we can fetch a “click & collect” order from a nearby supermarket (in normal hours please!)

How to pay

  • Wherever possible please order & pay the shop directly, then ask us to fetch it for you
  • If that’s not possible, the Taylor’s Charity can pay for the goods, and upon delivery you can make a transfer to repay them: please ask for details
  • If you really do need to use cash, please let us know when you phone, and you can repay us upon delivery
  • Our Volunteers are not authorised to request or accept payment from you “up front”
  • We also won’t request or accept your bank card or PIN

 How we deliver 

  • We will provide your receipt
  • We will put the bags on your step, knock on the door, and stand well back for you to pick them up
  • We strongly recommend that you wash your hands and the bags / crates thoroughly after handling the goods
  • We are not allowed to enter your home for both health and safeguarding reasons
  • We carry and show our Id; please do ask to examine it and if you have any doubts at all please close the door and ring us (see Helplines below: we won’t be offended)

Medication 

  • Volunteers should just fetch your medication, not discuss it!
  • So please call the pharmacy first, to discuss your request and make payment – even just for over-the-counter medication

ACCESS TO CASH

  • Wherever possible please pay shops directly, using your bank card or by cheque / cash to them upon delivery, but if that’s not possible, then we may be able to:
  • To find out more, please contact us, and we will arrange for someone to call you with details

HELPLINES

 We can ….

  • Take requests for shopping and other errands
  • Make arrangements for you to pay for shopping via the Taylor’s Charity
  • Be a friendly voice for a chat
  • Put you in touch with professional services

SAFEGUARDING and CONFIDENTIALITY

What if some of the arrangements described above don’t seem to be happening?

  • These arrangements are designed to serve and protect you, a resident of Tollesbury
  • If you are at all concerned that a Volunteer is not following these steps properly, please do not hesitate to contact us: we will look into it and address it tactfully and sensitively
  • This will help us to improve our service and care, and guard against wrongdoing

 Routine assistance

  • Each Volunteer provides a regular update to their Co-ordinator
  • For routine requests this uses only the resident’s address and first name, plus a brief description – eg “Collecting meds from pharmacy next Weds”, “Posted a letter today”, etc
  • We collect this so that we can make sure we’re providing the right services and that we’re still needed

Further assistance and escalation

  • A Volunteer may offer to find you extra help, such as from your relatives, social services, or a nurse
  • If so, they will ask if you would like them to do this, and if you agree, then they can arrange it for you through their Co-ordinator or the Steering Group
  • For this kind of help they will probably need to take your full name and address, and the type of help required
  • If there is a medical emergency, a Volunteer may of course decide to call 999, and it may not be possible in the circumstances to obtain your permission to do so
  • In the very unlikely event that a Volunteer believes that you are at serious risk of harm – or that you pose a serious risk of harm to another person – they may raise this without your permission to their Co-ordinator or to a Steering Group member
  • This would be very exceptional, and would include harm or abuse of a mental, physical, or financial nature

What you can do to help

  • Above all please do follow the Government’s Covid-19 guidelines
  • If you think a neighbour may be in difficulty, please don’t go into their home, but don’t hesitate to let us know, and we’ll gladly come and ask if they’re OK

Record keeping

  • When Tollesbury Volunteers disbands, any personal information it has acquired will be permanently destroyed, with the exception of any safeguarding records, which will be retained as legally required
  • Meanwhile it will be held securely by Tollesbury Volunteers
  • Please see our Safeguarding and Confidentiality policy
  • We also abide by the principles of the Parish Council’s Privacy Policy

Tollesbury Helplines: 07716 955 338  /  07934 723 187  /  07934 716 351 (8.30am–5.30pm daily)