Tag: personal protective equipment

Donated masks available for Brand Partners

Age UK has received a donation of masks that can be distributed to Partners for your staff and volunteers.

Age UK has a number of donated masks that can be distributed amongst Partners that might be struggling to acquire them for your staff. If your organisation has a desperate need for masks (they are Type IIR), please contact stuart.prince@ageuk.org.uk. Please ensure you provide the following information:

  • Contact name
  • Contact telephone number
  • Delivery address

Please note that Partners with registered services will have already received a mask donation recently, so priority will be given in this shipment to those Partners not operating registered services. Thank you.

Personal Protective Equipment Distribution

General PPE Distribution

Age UK is working with a number of suppliers to try to provide PPE for Brand Partners. A number of Registered Services have already received hand sanitiser and we are working on bigger deliveries for all Brand Partners. We will update this section as soon as we have further news on this.

PPE for staff in regulated services

This is in short supply at present. However, this message was released by DHSC on 18th March regarding the issue of PPE:

 We know that supplies of personal protective equipment to the care sector is fundamental for the good care of individuals with suspected symptoms of Covid-19.  

We are clear that no wholesaler has been asked to prioritise NHS provision over the care sector nor should they be doing so.  

Free distribution of fluid repellent facemasks from the pandemic flu stock will start this today Wednesday 18th March, with every care home and homecare provider receiving at least 300 facemasks.  We anticipate the distribution will be complete by next Tuesday.   This is aimed at tiding over the initial rise in demand following the change of guidance on facemasks last week. Providers are not required to take action; the stock will be delivered to them.

We are working rapidly with wholesalers to ensure a longer-term supply of all aspects of personal protective equipment, including gloves, aprons, facemasks and hand sanitiser.  For future PPE requirements, care providers should order PPE from their usual suppliers.  

If care providers have immediate concerns overs their supply of PPE, there is now a dedicated line for you, the health and social care sector.

The National Supply Disruption line

Tel: 0800 915 9964

Email: supplydisruptionservice@nhsbsa.nhs.uk

In the future, if a care provider is unable to get PPE from their normal supplier, the supplier is will be asked to report this to the National Supply Disruption Response (NSDR) team (as above), who can advise on alternative suppliers.

As always, if you have any questions about Covid-19, please email our Covid-19 enquiry helpline.