Reading school begins initiative to create PPE for frontline NHS workers

The design and technology department (DT) at Leighton Park School, based in Shinfield Road, Reading, began the initiative to start making protective masks to give to NHS frontliners.

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Launched on April 2 by head of DT Mark Smith, the idea was to create much needed Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) to support NHS workers facing coronavirus in their workplaces.

Referring to the shortage of medical PPE, Mark said, “Not every superhero wears a cape, but they do all wear masks!”

Mark began making protective face shields in the school’s DT workshop, with an original target of 200. "We are fortunate at Leighton Park to have access to tools and resources that can make a difference and keep our keyworkers safe - I just had to do something," said Mark.

Mark used the laser cutter to create re-usable plastic headbands out of polypropylene stock, to which he attached disposable A4 PVC sheets donated by the school’s Reading-based stationery suppliers, Frasers Office Supplies Ltd.

When others heard about what Mark was doing, teachers and the wider school community wanted to get involved.

The large population of resident staff at Leighton Park provided willing volunteers for assembling and distributing the equipment.

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Jo Swanborough, receptionist at Reading GP surgery, Parkside Family Practice, said: “We were so relieved to receive the face shields.

“Patients who shouldn’t be here are still coming in and it’s frightening.

I feel a lot more confident now. We are really, really grateful.

Really I’d like to take one home with me and wear it all the time.”

“We are just so grateful,” echoed Jane Goddard, GP surgery practice manager at Westwood Road Health Centre.

“We are asking our staff to put themselves at risk and I am very pleased we can now offer them some protection. When the face shields arrived I felt relief!

"Obviously the hospitals need to have the PPE but it means that surgeries are way down the pecking order.

"We have problems getting hold of masks so the face shields are a godsend.”

Gemma, at Gabriels' Angels, an in-home care service for the elderly, said: "I actually cried when the face shields were delivered.

"I’m so proud of all our team members doing so much, working as hard as possible, even more than they normally do.

"It gives us all a boost to know there are people out there who appreciate us and are helping us too.”

So far, in addition to providing 170 face shields to the Royal Berkshire Hospital, where they are in use in ICU and on some of the wards, and 500 to the Urgent Care Unit at Berkshire Healthcare Trust, the School has had orders from 4 other hospitals, a hospice, seventeen GP surgeries, one council, 11 care organisations and over 400 individual healthcare workers.

A total of 1,550 face shields have been manufactured so far and 1,413 distributed.

More and more requests are also coming in.

The new target is to create 10,000.

Donations

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help cover the cost of materials, and has now reached almost £12,000.

A plea for access to additional laser cutters has been met with a great response from ten other schools and two commercial organisations across Berkshire.

This means that production is no longer limited to the capacity of Leighton Park’s laser cutter.

Those keen to help make a difference and contribute their laser cutting resources include Denefield School, Prospect School, Reading Blue Coat School, Holme Grange, Forest School, Brakenhale School, Edgbarrow School, Shiplake College, Bulmershe School and Waingels College, together with rLAB, Reading and Neal Brothers Export Packaging, Silchester.

If you have access to a laser cutter and want to get involved, please email faceshields@leightonpark.com with your contact details.

The school would also like to hear from NHS organisations who need face shields.