We spoke to Melvin Hartley about how his Churchill Fellowship helped him put spontaneous volunteering into practice during the Covid pandemic and beyond. After travelling to the USA to explore how volunteers are organised in response to disasters, Melvin returned to the UK just as lockdown began and used his learning to coordinate community support in Hampshire. His Fellowship also helped shape HYPER (Hampshire Young People’s Emergency Response), showing how older teenagers can play an active role in emergency response.
By Melvin Hartley, 2026
