A TEAM of staff and students at a Wirral school has joined the fight against coronavirus by making thousands of protective visors for frontline NHS staff.

The masks, produced at St Mary's Catholic College in Wallasey, are helping nurses and patients at Royal Liverpool Hospital, Arrowe Park Hospital and Victoria Central Hospital in Wallasey.

They are also being distributed to staff at local care homes.

The project was the idea of Vanessa Morris, a Design Technology teacher.

She approached headteacher Tony Boyle with the idea when schools began to respond to the UK shortage of personal protective equipment by crafting their own. After studying an online template she was convinced the school, was capable of manufacturing the visors.

Once she began to make visors Vanessa was joined by Linda Churchill, a teaching assistant and Jamie Griffiths, head of their department, who were keen to take part in the effort. Four students also joined the team.

Wirral Globe:

Visors made by staff and students at St Mary’s Catholic College, Wallasey

As more people became aware of staff and members of the local community became aware of their work they received increased offers of help from staff, families and past students of the college.

They received pledges of materials and money so they could step up production and when they ran short of cable ties, the local community raised enough cash to pay for a consignment of 2,000 of them.

Among the donations was a gift of clear plastic to make the visors to the right medical grade by Wrexham-based Transcontinental Advanced Coatings UK Ltd.

As their output increased, Wirral Council coordinated distribution of the visors in hospitals and care homes and agreed to pay for the materials to make the visors.

Seacombe councillor Paul Stuart has made daily trips to the college to collect the visors and take them to a central hub for distribution.

So far, more than 2,300 visors, which cover the whole of the face and neck of the people who wear them, have been made and sent out to frontline workers.

Mr Boyle said: "I wondered initially whether there would be much demand but soon news got out and we have been inundated with requests from doctors' surgeries, the local walk-in centre and nursing homes and we’ve been able to respond.

"I've had lovely letters and emails of thanks from them."

He added: "We've also managed to involve some of the key workers’ children, who are still attending, which is particularly fitting.

"I couldn't be more proud of Vanessa and her visor manufacturing team. 

"They're committed to keeping this going for as long as the need is there. On behalf of us all we salute your efforts."

Once the materials have been cut and properly prepared, each visor takes about 10 minutes to make – at the cost of about 40p.

So far about £800 has been spent on materials.