Three groups in Burnham-On-Sea and Highbridge have this week been presented with Somerset Medals after being recognised as some of Somerset’s unsung coronavirus heroes.
Burnham and Highbridge heroes of pandemic receive Somerset Medals
Burnham-On-Sea and Highbridge’s community heroes of the Covid pandemic have received their Somerset Medals this week.
The Somerset Medal was launched by Somerset County Council to say a heartfelt thank-you to the best of the best.
Somerset’s Lord Lieutenant Annie Maw spoke at the start of the ceremony before the medals were presented last week.
As several local winners were unable to attend the ceremony last week, they received their awards on Monday in Burnham from county councillor Peter Clayton, as pictured here.
Burnham’s Ian Jefferies, pictured above, was instrumental in setting up the Burnham and Highbridge Coronavirus Community Support Group and organising the vaccination hubs at Berrow Medical Centre and the Mulberry Centre.
Local heroes of the pandemic presented with Somerset Medal
A select few of Somerset’s many unsung coronavirus heroes have been presented with awards as the first ever winners of the Somerset Medal.
The Somerset Medal was launched by Somerset County Council to say a heartfelt thank-you to the best of the best, with the winners honoured at a special reception at Taunton Rugby Club this week.
Somerset’s Lord Lieutenant Annie Maw spoke at the start of the ceremony before the medals were presented by Council Vice Chair Councillor Mark Keating.
Those honoured included local vaccination volunteers, food deliverers, PPE producers, pop-up shop keepers and a whole host of other good Samaritans who all went above and beyond to make sure Somerset kept going during the pandemic.
Covid vaccinations are set to finish from the end of May at The Mulberry Centre in Berrow when the service will move to Cheddar, it has been announced this week.
The Berrow site has been the focus for local vaccinations in the Burnham-On-Sea area since it opened last December.
NHS Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group says the GP-led community site will not continue in to phase two of vaccinations, to enable teams to focus more on day-to-day healthcare services.
Vaccinations will continue to be offered from the pharmacy-led site at the BASC sports ground in Burnham-On-Sea.
NHS Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group says: “The Somerset COVD vaccination programme is making very good progress, with over 572,874 vaccines given as of 16 May 2021.”
The owner of Brean’s Seagull pub has offered the site free of charge for local Coronavirus vaccinations to help ease the pressure on Berrow Medical Centre.
David Scott got in contact with organisers this week after he heard about queues of residents outside Berrow’s Mulberry Centre.
“I’m keen to help in any way I can,” he told Burnham-On-Sea.com. “I’ve offered our large car park and pub building to them if it’s required.”
“Brean is quiet at the moment so it’s suitable for local vaccinations in coming weeks and months.”
One of the team marshalling the vaccinations at Berrow told Burnham-On-Sea.com there had been queues of motorists at peak times due to the frequency of vaccinations at the centre being increased from one per 15 minutes to one per 5 minutes.