Need advice? Here's a list of agencies offering Covid-19 help in the Lancaster district and how to contact them

But there are many different charities and organisations available to help you through this difficult time.

A lot of people in the community are starting to struggle who have not been in such a situation before, and are now unsure where to turn for help, and Lancaster District CVS has put together a list of agencies offering support in various ways.

They have also launched ‘The Urgent Response Fund – Coronavirus’ fundraising appeal to support organisations working to mitigate the impact of the pandemic in the Lancaster district.

Within two weeks, more than £25,000 was raised and the grant programme was launched to get funds to organisations as quickly as possible.

This is a small grants fund for charities and community groups in need of resources to effectively deliver projects/activities to support the basic health and wellbeing needs of vulnerable members of the community in response to the coronavirus pandemic. There is no deadline and they aim to support groups within a week.

Visit https://lancastercvs.org.uk/funding/coronavirus/ for more information and how to apply.

The pandemic has had a financial effect on many families or individuals who have been furloughed and are awaiting their 80 per cent, have been made redundant and are awaiting benefits, self-employed people with no savings, or new business owners with no working capital.

* Lancaster City Council has set up a telephone and email help line to make sure people can get reliable support.

Call 01524 582000, or email [email protected] (for residents) or [email protected] (for businesses).

The phone lines are open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm and every Saturday and Sunday between 10am and 3pm. The hours are being kept under review and they may extend them in the future.

* Lancashire Adult Learning is helping to provide one-to-one support with CVs, online applications and employability skills. Contact 07770 047154 or email [email protected] to book your appointment.

* The Lancashire Enterprise Partnership's Skills and Employment Hub has launched the Lancashire Skills Swap service today, Thursday, to support the local business community during the coronavirus pandemic.

This unique service is dedicated to help businesses who are looking for people or volunteers, want to train their staff or want to offer people with knowledge and expertise to work for another business.

You can access the Lancashire Skills Swap by visiting www.lancashireskillshub.co.uk/skills-swap/ or contact the team by emailing [email protected]

* The council has also launched a partnership with Morecambe Bay Foodbank to co-ordinate and deliver emergency food parcels to vulnerable people across the district and they are available to anyone who is struggling during these unprecedented times.

A new website, www.lancasterdistrictcovid19.org.uk, has been created for agencies to refer someone for emergency food.

If anyone needs help, they can find the contact details of people and organisations who can refer them. If they don’t have access to the internet they can telephone the food hub on 01524 932001. Morecambe Bay foodbank is also online at https://morecambebay.foodbank.org.uk/

* People can find out how to get emergency food, business grants, business rate relief and advice and guidance at http://www.lancaster.gov.uk/environmental-health/emergency-planning/coronavirus

* North Lancashire Citizens Advice is able to offer advice over the phone or via email. Adviceline number is 03444 488 9622 and is available Monday to Friday 10am-4pm. Emails can be sent to [email protected]

* The National Lottery Heritage Fund has put together a £50m fund to support the heritage sector as an immediate response to the coronavirus outbreak at https://www.heritagefund.org.uk/funding/heritage-emergency-fund

* The Charities Aid Foundation is helping smaller charitable organisations in the UK affected by the impact of Covid-19. Grants of up to £10,000 are available. Go to https://www.cafonline.org/charities/grantmaking/caf-coronavirus-emergency-fund

* Carers UK has brought together the questions they have most frequently been asked by carers, to help address the main concerns and help put carers’ minds at rest. Go to https://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advice/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-further-support

* The National Autistic Society has collected a series of useful resources that autistic people and their families can use during this time. These can be found on their website at {https://www.autism.org.uk/services/helplines/coronavirus/resources/helpful-resources.aspx

* The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Command Centre has launched its #OnlineSafetyAtHome campaign to prevent online exploitation, and have produced a number of resources for a range of age groups at https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/

* The NSPCC has produced some guidance for parents on online safety at https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/online-safety/

* Refuge have a freephone 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247 - or go online at https://www.refuge.org.uk/

* The Samaritans can be contacted free by calling 116 123, day or night, 365 days a year.

* On Facebook, "Lancaster and Morecambe support group -Coronavirus" is also offering support and advice.

* To add a service or helpline to this list, email [email protected]