At RBH and Poole, volunteers have been manning several hospital entrances handing out face masks and hand gel and assisting with way finding.

Poole volunteer, Maddie Jukes, said, “I was originally due to start volunteering in the Emergency Department in March and had just received my uniform when unfortunately, due to Covid-19, I was unable to start.

“I am looking forward to meeting a range of people and gaining knowledge from a hospital environment.”

At RBH, younger volunteers have also been trying their hand at acting, playing the part of patients in the simulation suites for student nurse training.

Others have been going out into the community to check on fellow volunteers who are currently shielding, while an army of helpers have been making good use of their time at home and knitting various items for the hospitals, as well as making face coverings.

Jacky Taylor, voluntary services co-ordinator at RBCH, said, “While we’ve had some amazing volunteers who have helped out throughout the pandemic, we’ve really missed our wider volunteer community and we’ve been doing weekly Zoom chats to stay in touch with each other.”

Volunteers will eventually be deployed in different roles and departments across the trust.