Since the lockdown began, the college has been working daily to make personal protective equipment for NHS staff battling coronavirus, a project initiated by Head of DT Gary Duckering. It came as a national shortage of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for NHS staff on the front-line resulted in many key workers suffering injury from wearing uncomfortable equipment for long hours, or going without vital protective wear at all.

The school had been funding the initiative from existing materials to produce 10 – 12 protective face visors a day to help local hospitals and surgeries in the UK, using an existing 3D printer. College staff invested in an additional two printers to increase production levels but put a request out for support in order to increase production levels even further. 

The school are so grateful for all the support they have been shown from individuals, as well as the OW Masonic Lodge, the Provincial Grand Lodge of Nottinghamshire and Worksop’s Masonic Hall. The funds have seen the addition of 13 new printers, along with reems of filament material.

Headmaster, Dr John Price said; “ We are incredibly grateful for the support we have received from our Old Workspians, as well as the Masonic connections in the local province; it is testament to the strong community that exists both inside and outside the school. The additional printers and materials required to produce the protective visors will enable us to increase our production significantly, making a huge difference to those who need them most in the region.”

To date the college has produced over 1,000 visors, which have been distributed across the region, including Basetlaw Hospital, GP surgeries, local healthcare practitioners, care homes, and crematorium staff. The visors have also been sent further afield to the Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge and St George’s Hospital in London, where members of our alumni community work.
With many Masons within the province working, or have family working on the front line, the college has been delighted to offer support back to the community by providing protective face visors, including to Gladys and Ken Chui working at Clifton Manor Nursing Home and the Spire Hospital, Lincoln, along with W. Bro Bob Patchilt's son-in-law Steve, who is working in ICU at Lincoln Hospital.

 
Local NHS providers who are seeking support for PPE are asked to send requests to Lucy Smithson at l.smithson@wsnl.co.uk