Huddersfield PR company AH! PR helps Yorkshire Live website and Huddersfield Daily Examiner

Yorkshire media as a force for good during the coronavirus crisis

By Andy Hirst from AH! PR

As soon as the seriousness of the coronavirus became clear I knew I had to help.

People were quickly starting to set up community groups to help others in their own areas if they became isolated and ill but there was a clear need to give them publicity to spread their message as far as they could within their communities. Individuals were also wanting to help but how could they get that message out?

As former Head of Content at The Huddersfield Daily Examiner I realised the journalists would be hectic dealing with breaking news so offered to help voluntarily to set up a list of community groups and people eager to help others.

I mooted the idea with Examiner editor Wayne Ankers late on Saturday, March 21. He loved the idea and wanted to splash on the front page of Monday’s Examiner about the help out there. We set up a special email address (examinerhelp2020@gmail.com) for people to contact us with the vital information.

It was on the front page of the Examiner on Monday, March 23 – the day Boris Johnson formally put the UK on lockdown – with the full list of groups compiled by postcode area for March 25 and was also featured on the Yorkshire Live website.

https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/news/west-yorkshire-news/coronavirus-crisis-helping-hand-people-17962887

The information was then updated a couple of times in the paper.

It just shows how the media can be a very positive force for good as the information connected the groups to people in real need within their communities.