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#WeAreTogether 2021 – how Bucks joined the fight against COVID-19

#WeAreTogether 2021 – how Bucks joined the fight against COVID-19

This week we are celebrating Universities UK’s #WeAreTogether campaign which showcases how the UK higher education sector is working together against Covid-19 to maintain a positive, welcoming and inclusive community.

 

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Here are just a few fantastic ways that the Buckinghamshire New University staff and students have been working for the local communities during the pandemic. These are just some:

  • Hosting Bucks’ first mass Covid-19 vaccination site – Buckinghamshire’s first large-scaled Covid-19 vaccination site opened last month at Buckinghamshire New University’s Aylesbury campus today. The University joined forces with the NHS and Buckinghamshire Council to provide the Covid-19 vaccinations, with the site being operated by Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust. The Aylesbury campus already has a strong track record in healthcare, offering a range of traditional degrees and apprenticeships across the health and social care field, which makes its involvement in the vaccination effort even more fitting.
  • Student nurses conquering their fears to help save lives – A new book, Living with Fear: Reflections on Covid-19, was released where Bucks student nurses described how their fears inspired them to flourish and grow at a time of national crisis after they opted to join the frontline.
  • Deputy VC Gavin Brooks leads Skills Advisory Panel to tackle post Covid-19 skills challenges - Professor Gavin Brooks, Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor at Buckinghamshire New University, took the reins of a county-wide group charged by Government with ensuring that the skills taught in universities, schools and colleges match what local employers need for their businesses to thrive, both now and in the future after COVID.
  • Graduate’s ‘clapping hands’ go global during Covid-19 lockdown – What started as a lockdown moment between a Bucks alumni father and his son was projected across the world as a ‘thank you’ to keyworkers. Internationally renowned British artist and Bucks New University graduate Ian Berry projected his #iclapfor animation honouring the University’s nursing students and the care workers at Bucks Healthcare NHS Trust.
  • SU giving out hot school meals – The Government voted to oppose Marcus Rashford’s campaign to extend the free school meals scheme into the October half-term holidays so Bucks Students’ Union and student volunteers stepped up and provided school-aged children in need with a free hot meal throughout the whole week.
  • Moving Online Programme – The Gateway Gym has been providing 30-minute exercise sessions free for members of staff, students and NHS staff during the lockdowns, and more recently opened it up to members of the public to enjoy the health benefits. Feedback from participants has indicated overwhelmingly that the most appreciated benefit has been a positive impact on their sense of mental wellbeing and ability to cope with the difficulties faced during lockdown.
  • University donated 13,500 of PPE – Bucks gave around 13,500 items of much-needed personal protective equipment (PPE) to the NHS to protect staff on the front-line during the height of the pandemic. This is just one of a series of measures to support the nationwide effort that the University put in place. It also hosts an NHS test centre on its High Wycombe site.
  • Bucks technician supports the NHS - Buckinghamshire New University Textiles and Fashion Technician Sasha Cabey is among a team of dedicated volunteers producing much-needed Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for the NHS.