Praise for Battersea Residents Association during coronavirus pandemic

By Sian Bayley, local democracy reporter

Wandsworth residents today thanked volunteers at the Kambala Estate Residents Association in Battersea for their work providing meals, food packages and essential items to vulnerable residents during the coronavirus pandemic.

Amanda Hall, who lives by the Battersea Power Station, said she “would be totally lost” if it wasn’t for their help.

“I’m stuck at home due to being asthmatic, so that’s why I can’t go out to the shops. I have to be very careful. I’ve had pneumonia before so I’ve been warned to basically try to never get it again because it nearly killed me last time,” she said.

“As soon as I heard about their service, I just asked if they could help me with some little bits and pieces that I couldn’t get hold of, essentials like washing-up liquid and things like that. Or bits of food, because with my daughter, who is autistic as well, it’s been very hard to get food in for her, especially when it all started.”

Ms Hall gave special thanks to Donna Barham, Chair of the Kambala Estate Residents Association.

“I know with Donna, bless her, if there’s anything my daughter needs that’s a bit different, if she can do it, she will do it for her.”

Ms Hall said her daughter will not eat certain foods, and at one point would only eat sausages, but Donna and the Kambala team were always there to help.

“At first I was very worried about how we were going to get food in because sadly my mum lives in Wandsworth, and she obviously being elderly with COPD as well had to stay in isolation herself, and she’d been my main port of call in the past before all this started with getting help and getting food in if I couldn’t get out,” she said.

Ms Hall said at the start of lockdown she couldn’t get an online order, and even when she did, she couldn’t get everything she wanted.

“That’s where Kambala came in to be really helpful, bless them, because they would try to get the bits and pieces that I couldn’t get food-wise or household-wise. They just reached out in regards to whatever help I needed. They were there for me.”

Woijeck is a single dad of two and helps transport patients to and from hospital.

He now lives in Roehampton, but still has strong ties to the Kambala Estate.

When he had trouble accessing food after finishing late shifts at work, Donna and the team were more than happy to help.

He said: “I was working in a hospital so I finished quite late and when I got back to the shop the shelf was completely empty. That was really a big problem for us to buy even pasta and simple things, even toilet roll.

“Donna was asking for donations and she asked me if I needed anything. I said ‘don’t worry about it, I try to survive,’ and she said, ‘don’t worry, you deserve this one.’

“She sent me a really huge package on the first day – three huge boxes. Later on she would send me lunches. That was really great.”

On Sunday (June 7) the association welcomed the Mayor of Wandsworth, Jane Cooper, for a socially distanced meeting at the Katherine Low Settlement.

She congratulated the team for their hard work and heard that since lockdown began they have delivered more than 500 food packages with the help of local volunteers.

All meals are cooked and distributed safely from the kitchen at the Katherine Low Settlement.

The group is supported by The Dons Local Action Group who help with food donations collected by volunteers at local supermarkets and distribution hubs.

Kambala Chair, Donna Barham, said she was “delighted” to welcome the mayor, adding: “I am so proud of how the community has come together to support each other in this turbulent time and we are working hard to deliver bespoke packages to meet every Kambala Estate resident’s needs.”

Today (June 9) a number of Wandsworth charities, including the Katherine Low Settlement, Wandsworth Foodbank, Citizen’s Advice Wandsworth, South West London Law Centres and Wandsworth Carers’ Centre have come together to urge people who have been pulled into hardship to apply for Wandsworth Council’s Discretionary Social Fund (WDSF).

The local welfare assistance scheme allows Wandsworth residents to apply for emergency help towards the cost of food and utilities through Sainsburys and Asda supermarket vouchers and gas and electricity grants for prepayment meters.

It also can go towards costs of essential white goods and furniture (such as fridge, cooker, bed, table and chairs) and rent costs via the Discretionary Housing Payment.

Residents can apply online and receive up to three grants in the next six months.

Dan Frith, from Wandsworth Foodbank, said the team have seen the need for their food bank more than double, and have already provided more than 3,000 emergency food parcels to local people.

Aaron Barbour, Director at the Katherine Low Settlement described the Wandsworth Discretionary Social Fund as a “vital lifeline” for residents.

He said he would encourage all local people who need it to make an application via the council’s website – including families who have No Recourse to Public Funds, who can now also get help from the fund.

“We’ve seen how the lockdown has made many people’s lives a misery, both economically and emotionally. Local charities, community groups and the Council have sprung into action, and this Discretionary Fund is another important piece of the support jigsaw,” he said.

To find out more about the fund, visit: https://wandsworth.gov.uk/housing/benefits-and-support/discretionary-support-grants/