Derbyshire Police Support Volunteer has donated 1200 hours to the NHS during the pandemic

Vince Parker has put in 1,200 hours of volunteer time with the NHS as he is unable to volunteer with the police at the moment

When the pandemic began, the decision was made to temporarily stop volunteers coming into stations and police Headquarters in order to keep them, their families, and officers and staff safe.

However Vince Parker knew that his help would still be needed and offered to volunteer with the NHS and since last year has given a staggering 1,200 hours of his time to help others.

He said: “I hated when volunteering was stopped due to Covid.

“That’s why I signed up to be an NHS volunteer responder, so that somehow I could keep on helping out the best I could.”

Vince gets a notification through an app that tells him someone needs his help. Once he accepts the task, he will then be sent contact details and arrange support.

Vince explained: “It’s usually someone needing some shopping fetching or some advice, or even just a chat. So you help out just a little bit, but it makes a big difference to someone who has to isolate or has to shield.”

More recently, Vince has also been marshalling at vaccination centres.

Derbyshire Police say it is incredibly proud of Vince and thank him for volunteering his time to our NHS colleagues.

Assistant Chief Constable Michelle Shooter, who is the lead for the Citizens in Policing portfolio, said: “Vince is a really valued member of our PSV family. He is a very active, hands on volunteer who will happily get involved with anything.

“During the past year as a result of the pandemic, he has been unable to volunteer with us as much as normal, and I was humbled to hear of how he has put himself forward as an NHS volunteer in the meantime.

“He has been doing this alongside his role with us as a PSV Cadet Leader, as well as working and spending time with his family.

“I look forward to thanking him in person as soon as we are able to, but in the meantime I’m sure you’ll agree that this is a commendable contribution from him, and I hope you will join me in saying a heartfelt thanks to him for his service to the NHS.”