Clap For Carers tonight and let’s make some noise for our NHS

People across Southport are getting ready to make some noise this evening during the second weekly Clap for Carers celebration.

Last week, thousands of local people stood on their doorsteps or looked out of their windows to clap for a minute as a thank you for our incredible NHS staff battling the coronavirus pandemic.

And at 8pm tonight they are getting ready to do it all again.

Tonight’s Clap for our Carers celebration will honour our healthcare workers, emergency services, armed services, delivery drivers, shop workers, teachers, waste collectors, manufacturers, postal workers, cleaners, vets, engineers and ‘all those who are out there making an unbelievable difference to our lives in these challenging times’.

People are asked to come to their front doors or windows – while maintaining social distancing rules – and clap for a full minute.

Last week’s Clap for Carers event saw a tremendous response on many Southport streets.

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Speaking on Stand Up For Southport, Katy Jordan said: “We were out for our daily exercise with the dog and there was a good turn out on Berwick Avenue, Fairfield Road and Burnley Road. Someone was out with pans and someone else with a drum. Couldn’t join in as the dog panicked so ended up carrying her till it was over but was lovely to see so many joining in.”

Kathryn Ansem said: “Heard you Manchester Road cheering…. so decided to do the same, Zetland Street.”

Suzanne Wright said: “Longford Road, quite a few NHS workers down our road!!”

Laura Wearing said: “Mallee Avenue in Churchtown had clapping and cheering going on! Our doctors and nurses are absolute heroes and deserve this and more.”

Angela Birchall said: “Chestnut Street was absolutely fantastic! I stepped outside at 8pm and heard the whole street cheering, clapping, whistling, hooting horns and yelling ‘thank you NHS’, for a lot more than just a minute.”

Pam Orme said: “Shaftesbury Road – quite a few out – and heard lots around the area and car horns too.”

Children of NHS nurses meanwhile will feature in a new short film that taps into the nation’s gratitude to health workers helping in the Covid-19 crisis, which will be premiered just before tonight’s second national ‘Clap for Carers’ event.

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The children of nurses from Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust, one of the leading mental health, learning disability and community health trusts in the country, explain what their Mums and Dads do to help others, which is accompanied by a soundtrack of singer Rae Morris’ soulful cover of The Beatles classic ‘All you need is Love.’

Mersey Care runs The Hesketh Centre on Albert Road in Southport, with their new purpose-built hospital being built on Scarisbrick new Road. .

It will be premiered at 7.45pm on the Trust’s website, just 15 minutes before the ‘Clap for Carer’s event, when people throughout the country are encouraged to clap for all the health workers helping those affected by Covid-19.

Trish Bennett, Mersey Care’s Executive Director of Nursing, said: “This is the International Year of Nurse and the current crisis has brought their work into sharp focus. Along with their colleagues in other clinical and support roles our nurses are at the frontline of the fight against Covid-19. Every single nurse, no matter what discipline, makes such a difference to their patients.”

You can watch the film trailers here at: https://youtu.be/0Xn_y2SqHhc or https://youtu.be/BcN__5aeynw and the full film will be premiered via the Mersey Care website at 7.45pm tonight (2 April)