Our Covid-19 Action Plan

Chief Executive Julia Weston introduces our plan:

“Churchill Fellows are widely involved in mitigating the effects of Covid-19 right across the UK - in frontline healthcare and in other sectors like mental health, food supply, domestic abuse, rural isolation and more. Their activities reflect the spirit and selflessness of the Churchill Fellowship, which was founded to remember Britain’s great wartime leader.

“The Fellowship is a national network of 3,800 dedicated experts in every sector of society, from the grassroots to the Cabinet Office. Their contribution across so many issues offers an invaluable resource for the nation. Our aim is to support that resource through funding, knowledge-sharing and lessons learnt for the future.”

Guided by this, our Covid-19 Action Plan has four points:

1. We are launching a Covid-19 Action Fund on 29 April. This special Fund will award grants of up to £10,000 to increase Fellows’ Covid-19 related activities. We are investing £250,000 in the Fund and seeking donations to grow it. You can donate to this vital work here.
2. We have opened a Covid-19 Action Network. This online forum allows Fellows to collaborate on Covid-19 issues, posting news, seeking advice and sharing recommendations from the frontline.
3. In the coming weeks we will share relevant recommendations and reports from Fellows, through our professional networks, social media and website. This will share Fellows’ learnings, whether current or past, to those who can best use them. You can read Fellows' blogs and news on Covid-19 here.
4. As the UK moves into the recovery phase, we will gather ‘lessons learned’ from Fellows’ activities on Covid-19, to create a national resource and knowledge bank of learnings and recommendations. This resource will be available for policy-makers and practitioners in many sectors as the UK starts to restore itself, build resilience and prevent future similar scenarios.

Given the current context, and the uncertainties of travel for the foreseeable future, this spring we will not be opening for applications for 2021 Fellowships. Instead, we will focus on this Action Plan to support Fellows to assist the UK’s recovery and future resilience. We will be reopening for applications as soon as it is feasible, probably in April 2021, when Churchill Fellowships will be more vital than ever before. In 2021, we look forward to supporting the 2020 Fellows to undertake their travels, which have had to be paused for now.

To support our Action Fund, please follow the link here or contact giving@churchillfellowship.org.