Staff at Futures Institute show support for frontline care workers by producing nearly 100 visors to protect against coronavirus

A Banbury school has given its support to frontline care workers by producing almost 100 visors to protect against coronavirus.

Staff at Futures Institute, the sister school of Wykham Park Academy, made the decision to step forward and assist after being sent a plea for help by a member of staff at Agnes Court Care House.

Head of Engineering & Construction, Lyndon Jeremiah revealed shortly after the email from the care home arrived last Thursday he got to work with Ralph Jones an engineering technician at the school.

By Friday afternoon they had 25 visors completed and on Monday another batch, this time of 50, were made and delivered to the care home. A handful of visors have also been dropped off at Beech Haven care home in Chipping Norton.

Crucially the duo were able to use polypropylene material already in stock at the school to make the visors. With the school shut for all children, bar those of key workers or classed as vulnerable, Mr Jeremiah is pleased the sheets of plastic, which have gone unused since lockdown of schools, have helped to save lives.

He told the Banbury Guardian: ‘’We spent time working on a prototype and adapted our software. Once that was done we were away. It feels really good to be able to help and it’s great that we didn’t have to order material as we could use what we already had in stock.

‘’Being able to make a positive difference to people at this time is great and it was a team effort.’’

Yin-Chien Yeap, founder of Playko: The Play Kompany, which is based at Futures Institute in Banbury, used a 3D printer to also create a handful of visors that have been handed to Agnes Court.

Julia Ingham, Vice Principal at the academy, said: ‘‘We were delighted to be approached by one of our local are homes: Agnes Court, to support them by providing visors at this time of crisis.

‘’We pride ourselves on being a school at the heart of the community and their willingness to approach us was a clear indication of this. We are all in this together and we are delighted to be able to help in whatever way we can.’’