Help your neighbour with app created by Higham Ferrers man

A Higham Ferrers software developer has created an app to make it easier to help others during the coronavirus outbreak.

Andrew Bush, 28, spent a week putting together Help A Neighbour to centralise offers of support during the pandemic.

The not-for-profit app allows anyone who needs help to ask for it - and anyone who can help simply enters their postcode to find the help that has been requested in their community.

Andrew said: "I saw a rise in people who wanted to help and it made me think about how they all communicate.

"A lot of it is done over Facebook which is fine but there's all sorts of stuff on there, videos, nasty comments and the like, so I thought it would be good if there was a simpler way.

"Everyone who is helping has their own skillset. I build apps for a living, so this is my way of helping out."

The app, found at http://help-a-neighbour.co.uk, can be used on phones and on the web.

When the link is opened on an Android phone it asks you if you want to open the app and when used on an iPhone it provides instructions on how to do so.

So far about 20 people have offered help on the app with some listed 'superheroes' and organisations who are able to offer assistance.

Huge numbers are currently self-isolating because they are either over 70 or have underlying health conditions and Andrew said they will need our support over the coming weeks and months.

He added: "If someone is able to help, they can sign up and offer help. If someone needs help, they can ask for it.

"This is going to go on for quite a while and I would like to think that it will change us as humans and make us a bit nicer as a person.

"It would be nice to see people still use it to help their neighbours once this is over."