We are raising £6,000 to fund and make protective face shields to support and protect the brave and vulnerable workers on the Covid-19 front line. This is a not for profit project, to fund the manufacture and delivery costs of the face shields to organisations which are desperately in need. The face shields are being made in a virus controlled environment with voluntary workers at the fully equipped workshops of our colleague and friend, Jon Stynes Design in Brampton, Cumbria. We are both designer makers used to working in the theatre and exhibition building industry. We have turned our experience towards helping in this time of national need.
Each visor has a materials only cost of £3.00, to include some postage or delivery to where needed. Any donations via the Just Giving link would be most appreciated to help us, to help our frontline workforce in a very direct way. Please share this link as much as possible, to get the word out to people who need visors, as well as for donations. We set out with a target of £2000 and have gone well above that figure, which is amazing. We have become very aware of how huge the demand and need is for help and we will carry on doing this job until we have helped as many brave people as we can.
https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/john-parkinson
Our unique visor design allows for rapid manufacture. We have two workshops working on the project because Cumbria NHS and the NW and NE Ambulance Service have asked us to supply them. They are paying the minimum material cost for their visors and we are able, in this way, to help more people on the front line to keep hospitals going. All other requests are fulfilled and delivered free of charge.
The two plastics used in making the visors are recyclable, which is important to us. There is no elastic to absorb the virus, so the face shields can be sterilised and re-used, rather than single use only. Less of our masks can do more work. Following a request, we have themed some visors with designs donated by local friend, Tim Ellis. This has made them “child friendly” for use on children’s wards and to cheer people up in Care Homes. They are on their way to Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital and to children’s wards in Sheffield, Leicester, Edinburgh, Wiltshire and Newcastle.
We have shared our designs for free on the internet across the world, through international design forums. Production has already started in New York. We are delighted that in this way we are helping as many people as possible. Please share our story in as many ways as you can, if we can inspire other makers with our success we would be delighted.
In the coming days we will evidence pictures of the face shields in use across some of the areas we have supplied. Look out for pictures and information here and on the Facebook pages of Jon Stynes Design and Upfront Arts Venue.
