Hammersmith and Fulham Leisure Centres help donate £3850 of PPE to London’s NHS

Leisure centre workers in Hammersmith and Fulham are amongst those from across London and Surrey who have pulled together and collected a massive 115,000 items of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) worth over £3850 from their workplaces in order to support London’s NHS.

 

The items have been donated to St Thomas’s Hospital, part of the Guy’s and St Thomas’s Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

 

The PPE (overshoes and gloves) are normally used by Better leisure centre staff on cleaning and maintenance duties or for administering first aid at the 270 leisure facilities they run across the UK – including 120 sites in London and the Surrey.

 

Staff at Hammersmith Fitness and Squash Centre, Lillie Road Fitness Centre, and Phoenix Fitness Centre and Janet Adegoke Swimming Pool collected their items over the last week.

 

Better Leisure Centres are run by the UK’s leading not-for-profit leisure social enterprise GLL.

 

With all Better Leisure Centres, gyms and pools closed since 20 March by Government order, the provider wanted to do its bit for civil resilience.

 

Commenting on the donation of PPE, Hammersmith& Fulham Partnership Manager at Better, Johnny Simons said:

 

“As a social enterprise we exist to support the physical, mental and social health of local communities across the UK and our primary concern is to help them through the current crisis which has hit the capital hardest.

 

“With our facilities now closed, we don’t need the PPE now - but the NHS does. By donating our stocks to St Thomas’s Hospital – one of London’s busiest – we can help protect more Critical Care staff who are doing the most important job of saving lives every day.

 

“We want to thank Hammersmith & Fulham Council for supporting this initiative. Along with the support of our staff volunteers and charity partners, together we are really making a difference in supporting local communities.”

 

Cllr Wesley Harcourt, Hammersmith & Fulham Cabinet Member for Environment said:

 

“I’m delighted that GLL, which runs our three leisure centres, has donated this vital equipment to key workers on the frontline of the battle against coronavirus.

 

“During these uncertain times it is acts like this, which strengthen our resilience as a community, that will help see us through.”