Coronavirus and Hedge Fund
The hedge planting events we are planning as part of the Hedge Fund project between Possible and Nature Friendly Farming Network offer participants the opportunity to take part in positive community action against climate change and biodiversity loss, in a low-risk, outdoor environment. Opportunities like these are currently rare, but much needed to maintain good mental and physical health.
Safety must be our number one priority throughout these events, and we must ensure that volunteers and staff are not put at unnecessary risk of infection, that all local and national restrictions are adhered to, and that everyone on site plays their part in keeping us all safe.
General precautions that we will take include
Limiting the total number of volunteers on site at any one time to 30.
Ensuring the whole activity takes place outdoors where the risk is lower.
Asking volunteers who have symptoms or have been in contact with anyone showing symptoms to stay at home and follow government guidelines.
Requiring face coverings to be worn by those who are able to.
Ensuring that all participants maintain social distancing of 2 metres at all times.
Providing sanitisation stations.
Providing a portaloo with hand sanitiser on both the inside and outside, and a requirement to clean hands before entering as well as on exiting.
Asking participants to bring their own food and drinks, keep them with them at all times and not to share.
Providing new gloves to each participant that they will keep for their own use and take away with them.
Ensuring all spades are provided to participants clean, with a label for them to write their names on. Everyone keeps to their own spade, and it is sanitised at the end of the day.
Where participants require transport to and from the site, we will ensure that we provide a vehicle with adequate space and ventilation (windows open) for passengers to social distance, and require face covering for those who are able to wear them.
There is currently an England-wide limit to gatherings of 6 people. There are exceptions where groups can be larger than 6 people, including for work, or the provision of voluntary or charitable services. Where a group includes someone covered by such an exception (for example, someone who is working), they are not counted as part of the gatherings limit. This means, for example, a tradesperson can go into a household of six without breaching the limit, if they are there for work.
We will adhere to this rule by
Organising small groups with timed volunteering slots at different locations around the farms, wearing coloured stickers showing which group they are in
Using existing bubbles (such as households or school classes) to volunteer together
Ensuring that people maintain social distance within groups
Ensuring that groups stay a safe distance apart
Local restrictions are in place in some areas, which include but are not limited to travel restrictions outside that area. We will check the government website for updates on local restrictions that may affect the events, and make necessary plans or cancellations as required. We will ensure that volunteers do not travel from places with local restrictions by requiring their home postcode when registering and asking them to confirm that they are not subject to local restrictions.