Hereford hero brings vital supplies to charity

Leonard Cheshire is faced with a national shortage of vital PPE for its frontline staff and is working creatively with local businesses to source affordable stocks. 

Hereford man Josh Salmon, who owns Elite Plastics, responded to the coronavirus crisis by retooling his business to produce polyethene aprons for care providers. In just two weeks, Josh was able to produce 200,000 aprons for Leonard Cheshire. 

To help the charity manage costs at this difficult time, Josh also offered the equipment at around a third of the usual price.

Louise Wright, senior commercial development manager at Leonard Cheshire, tracked Josh down over LinkedIn.

Louise said:

“We were so lucky to find him. Securing PPE is a challenge for all charities, but Josh worked incredibly quickly to get us what we needed. We should be hugely thankful for the business owners who have turned their resources over to providing such vital equipment. 

“Considering the rising costs of PPE, we were floored by the price Josh gave us for these crucial supplies I think this really shows how businesses are going above and beyond to help keep people safe during this time and acting quite selflessly.” 

Leonard Cheshire runs care homes, supported living facilities and services for over 3,000 disabled people across the UK supporting them to live, learn and work independently. During this time, PPE is vital to help protect staff, their families and residents from the coronavirus. Currently, Leonard Cheshire is spending £400,000 on PPE each month, with the figure expected to rise significantly.

Media enquiries

For further information please contact Samuel Buckley on 0203 242 0204 or via email at samuel.buckley@leonardcheshire.org.