Staff at Halton Housing Trust have been going the extra mile to ensure its older and vulnerable customers are safe.

“We have been doing all we can to make sure that our customers are getting the support they need to beat the weather,” said Ann Kingsbury, from the Trust’s Customer Involvement Team.

Ann came to the rescue of an elderly resident in Runcorn on Tuesday last week, during the height of the cold weather, after heavy snowfall disconnected her phone lines, leaving her unable to call for assistance.

Ann added: “We were concerned when we found out her phone line was down as it meant she could not use the Halton Borough Council Lifeline service, which allows her to call for help if needed.

”Before we went home for the day we decided to go and see her and make sure she was okay. When we arrived she was very frightened because she was unable to leave her house due to the weather.

“We encouraged her to stay calm and assured her that we would help in any way we could.  We assisted her with her day-to-day tasks until her phone line was repaired and we knew she could call for help if needed. She was very grateful for our support.

“The Trust has taken several steps this winter to look after customers, including our popular Keep Warm, Keep Well campaign which saw the Trust distribute hats, scarves and gloves to customers on the run up to the Christmas period.

“There have also been a number of examples of our staff braving the weather to make sure our customers have been safe.”