‘Coronation Street’ star Dolly-Rose Campbell has been volunteering at Manchester-based foodbank Emmeline’s Pantry.
The 33-year-old actress – who plays Gemma Winter on the ITV soap – became an ambassador for the charity two years ago and she is now lending a helping hand at the centre, which is run by women for impoverished women and their families providing much-needed items such as food, toiletries, cleaning products, baby equipment and clothes.
Emmeline’s Pantry is open to ladies across the city who are able to access the service for a donation on a weekly or monthly basis depending on their need and financial situation.
Since the coronavirus outbreak began, the foodbank has seen a 75 per cent increase in families requiring help and a significant increase in donations from businesses that have had to close because of the government imposed lockdown as well as good being supplied by supermarkets and kind-hearted local residents.
Dolly’s responsibilities, along with her fellow volunteers, include sorting through donations in the morning and then after women have chosen what they need through a window bringing the items to the visitors whilst observing the two metre distancing guideline.
Dolly’s support and help has been praised by Emmeline’s Pantry on the charity’s official Facebook page, in a post that read: "She supports us on social media all the time comes to all our events and is incredible.
"But over this month she has really helped, in the first three weeks coming in every day after work and once work closed in all day helping out as much as she could serving clients, crowd control, packing bags receiving donations, videos, radio interviews, everything that’s needed.
"She even has roped in family and friends to help."
In one show of support on her own Instagram account Dolly shared a photo of essential goods that had been donated to Emmeline’s Pantry and thanked everyone for their contributions, whilst urging people not to stockpile food during lockdown.
Last month, she posted: "I have been overwhelmed @emmelinespantry today. Me and the volunteers collected so many donations from so many wonderful kind people, who came from all walks of life and donated what they could. We even had deliveries from Amazon and even the Asda Man came with toilet paper! We are so grateful, your donations make a world of difference to our families who will be coming throughout the week. Many people rely on services like this one. Please stop the madness, think of others and share don’t stockpile."
Her ‘Corrie’ co-star Alexandra Mardell – who portrays hairdresser Emma Brooker – has also volunteered at the charity, helping out before last Christmas.
Dolly is currently on hiatus from ‘Coronation Street’ due to production being shutdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the weekly transmission schedule reduced from six episodes to three to keep the soap on air with previously recorded instalments.
On ‘Corrie’, Dolly’s alter ego Gemma – who is in a relationship with Chesney Brown (Sam Aston) – has been experiencing postnatal depression after giving birth to quadruplets.
Dolly-Rose Campbell becomes a volunteer at Emmeline’s Pantry foodbank
