IN A SPECIAL message to residents, Petersfield Mayor Lesley Farrow says she is proud of how the town has come together in the face of the coronavirus outbreak that has seen local people die.

As the number of poor souls who have died from this awful virus rise, and the most vulnerable in our communities are self-isolating for three months,these are going to be very testing times.

And the prospect of self-isolation can be daunting, but this to save your life or the lives of those around you.

At the council all but a skeleton staff is working from home under the direction of our very able town clerk, Neil Hitch.

Neil, myself and the councillors will remain in frequent contact to ensure the smooth running of the town.

Working closely at coordinating efforts with East Hampshire District Council, Steve Field and Kathryn Ellis-Blandford are coordinating the town council’s Covid-19 day-to-day response.

I am extremely pleased we have had a huge number of volunteers coming forward so, via our Agencies Together group (33 local and national charities) and we are matching volunteers to the most suitable organisations.

And the ‘NHS Clap’ that sees people applaud hospital staff and emergency services personnel is pulling communities together.

On a late evening Thursday trip to Waitrose I realised the staff were going out en masse from all over the shop and heading for the door.

At 8pm everything stopped and the till girls and most of the customers, including myself, began clapping. I realised the large number of staff outside were also applauding loudly.

It was very touching – these shop staff people who have worked so hard over the past weeks for often demanding and sometimes rude customers were applauding the hard workers battling this terrible disease.

So finally I wish you all the very best in these very strange and worrying times, and remind you the town council is here to help you in the best way it can.

Contact the council on 01730 264182 and ask for aid coordinator Stephen Field, or email him at [email protected] or email Katherine Ellis-Blandford at [email protected]

For more information about our response to the crisis, visit the council website at www.petersfield-tc.gov.uk/covid-19-response