Just wanted to share some positive news. I still haven't received the shielding letter though my GP confirms I am in the very vulnerable category due to taking abstractly and having asthma and bronchiectasis. I have been hugely frustrated trying to get online good deliveries, with no slots any where this month. I self registered using the Gov.uk link and have just had an email from Sainsbury to say I'm now on their priority list. Feeling incredibly thankful and relieved that I can look forward to getting reliable food delivery without my husband , who has heart disease, putting himself in a vulnerable position to fetch food.
I hope this might offer hope and encouragement to others waiting like me.
Stay indoors and stay safe where one, hopefully some warm weather will let us enjoy some sunshine in the garden over the weekend.
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Strangely, registering as vulnerable with supermarkets in this way seems to only be in place for England? I haven’t been able to find similar for Scotland .
I hope this eases the pressure for you - it’s one we could all do without.
It took around a week from self registering to getting a response, so maybe it's coming soon!! Having said which I tried to book a slot earlier on and there are none available!!
Are you already a Sainsbury's customer? I'm in the same position, extremely vulnerable and letter 'on the way' but not arrived yet. Can't get a delivery slot with any supermarket. Good luck everyone.
Not sure if you are a Sainsbury’s customer but I am self isolating just because I live on my own and couldn’t get a slot with any supermarkets. I kept trying Sainsbury’s and the page came up saying “you have not been identified as vulnerable!” I registered with Gov but didn’t hear back from them so tried ringing the 0800 number that is on the not identified as vulnerable page. Couldn’t get through to start with but eventually I did. It was a 6 min phone call , you don’t speak to anyone but it is so worth doing. At the end of it I was told it would take 2 days before I could order and 2 days later I could. Nothing available, but I kept the page open and looked every hour because it said something to the effect that they were adding slots all the time. All of a sudden I noticed a little green van appear against next Thursday! My fingers has never moved so fast to click on it and book it. My advice is to start shopping on the site, so when you spot a slot you’ve already got your shopping started. I didn’t even save mine, they were just still there every time I logged in. If your not a Sainsbury’s customer I would think all you have to do first of all is register. Hope this helps, good luck.
I very much fear that by the time this starts to settle I shall be far too rotund, but as long as we're safe I'll think about dieting later! I love to bake and it passes the time with a sense of having achieved something, my daughter is still working-she's a zoo keeper so no working from home possible!, so I bake for her and the team at least once a week.
Congratulations....that must be a weight off your mind. I've also had an email from Sainsbury's this morning advising the Government have declared me extremely vulnerable. Like you I've not had any notification letter from my GP but did register on the Gov website. To be honest in my case I'm surprised. For one thing and like many of us on here, I see myself as high or very high risk, though not extremely vulnerable based on all the info available. And for another when I registered I ticked the box advising I'd got help with shopping! To explain-Im very lucky to have a daughter getting my shopping whilst I'm shielding/self isolating, but she's a nurse and at risk herself. I registered in case-God forbid-she gets sick and can't help me. Given my experience I'd advise anyone who hasn't had 'the letter' yet to register themselves on the Gov website. Sorry for not posting a link but it's easily found on Google.
Ps. I believe you do need an online supermarket account before they can notify you.
Hi, Well done. I received a text from my health authority saying I was in the very high risk category, but have not yet received a letter. Apparently the letter is the requirement!! The letter is supposed to follow the text - but not yet. I received the text on Monday. I contacted NRAS yesterday and they were very clear that the letter should follow, and gave me a couple of contact points, which I am going to follow up today. Feeling very vulnerable and in so much pain. Very difficult times, but people are so much worse off than me, I am not going to complain.
Really sorry to hear that you're in pain Pat. I think many of us are frightened, it's not knowing how we'll fare if we contract the disease. I'm finding that whilst physically I'm managing reasonably well with the usual meds and pain relief I feel incredibly vulnerable and emotional. I just watched an online message from our local hospital's ICU and ended up with tears streaming down my face, they're doing an amazing job and putting themselves in harms way for total strangers and it's taking a toll on them too. Here locally there's a high incidence of disease and at least 2 health care professionals have lost their lives in the last week.
I take Abatacept and I have diabetes but I've been told that I will not get a letter by Rheumatology because the criteria NHS England are using is dependent on not only your health conditions but also the drugs you take. You have to apparently have 3 points to receive a letter and I have 2 points only..1 for diabetes and 1 for the Abatacept. I also take a DMARD - sulphasalazine but that carries no points. I think there are probably lots of people waiting for letters that are not going to come. It's a problem if, like me, you feel vulnerable and other people tell you you're at risk but you have nothing to support that fact. My GP said he didn't know what criteria was being used and needed guidance himself! Ah well nevermind, keep calm and carry on eh?
I am delighted to hear this. I have RA and severe asthma and have been very ill for 4 weeks with no test to confirm coronavirus as have only had 2 trips to A£E rather than being admitted, so have not been tested. The RA in isolation would not qualify me I do not take the correct drugs, however I have had 2 courses of steroids in the last year, indeed las 4 weeks for asthma. The GPs have advised that I should be getting a letter, but none has arrived. My daughter is currently ill, my husband has a pacemaker and heart issues and my son is also asthmatic so there is no one I could send out even if I wanted to. To date friends have been helping me. I have now had a text after registering but have not received any emails from any of the supermarkets. How long did it take after registering to get the supermarket email?
Ps..... I assume they don't just take your word for it that you're vulnerable and this is why they ask for your NHS number, so they can check the facts.
I am so relieved to report that this evening I received an email offering me a weekly delivery slot. I cried my eyes out with relief. I am still very unwell, but this is one less thing to worry about!
You really do need some help don't you. Are there any local volunteer groups who could offer assistance? I'm sorry to hear that you've been so unwell, asthma is so scary isn't it.
It took around a week from self registering to getting the text, then another couple of days to receive the email. I hope that you hear something soon.
I am just delighted to report that this evening I received an email offering me a weekly delivery slot. I cried with relief. I am still so unwell but at least I don’t have to worry about being able to get food in for our family. Things are going to be tight, my husband had been furloughed and I have not worked for a month, but we will get through this.
I'm not convinced that just getting the letter will get you onto the priority list for deliveries but that you need to register on the government website too. You don't have to have received your letter to register with the Government website so I decided to do that just in case my letter didn't arrive. I ticked the box that says I don't have someone else to shop for me as that made sense as my objective was to get deliveries.
You will need to register as a customer with supermarkets before they know you exist so I also registered with every supermarket I could think of. I did that whilst I was waiting for my letter and the email arrived from Sainsbury's on the same day as the letter arrived - hurrah! Nothing yet from any of the other supermarkets I registered with so full marks to Sainsbury's. I feel truly blessed
Hi Pippin, I registered on the Gov. website late last Sunday, received a text confirming my registration on Wednesday (which also said they would inform the NHS of my status!) and got my letter from my GP's surgery yesterday. The email from Sainsbury's also arrived yesterday so for me the whole process was about 5 days. I'm classified as extremely vulnerable which I'd never felt until Coronavirus arrived and it's not something I want to feel and definitely want to be but if that's what it takes to get groceries delivered, so be it. I'm sure we'll all be able to get back to a more positive mental attitude after the virus has been starved out of existence and we can get out and about again.
So glad to hear you have been allocated slots from sainsburys.
I'm in a similar position, couldn't get a slot, couldn't get through to customer services. I registered on the government site and yesterday got an email from sainsburys and found a slot. So grateful. Of course, seeing it in black and white as being vulnerable is a bit disconcerting. I indicated on the site that I did have help as two friends have offered.
So I hope this gives others hope. It all happened in about a week.
good to hear for you, not had my letter, have registered with Gov.uk, but no emails re: delivery slots, family mostly over 80, so just hoping a neighbour calls by xx
I hope you hear something positive soon, and that your neighbours will step in. If not it m ay be worth contacting your local council to ask if there's any support available, I know our local council have established a list of volunteers and created boxes of basic food supplies for those who can't get food any other way.
Thanks, will look into this, so far have found online some fruit and veg deliveries and local pubs and chippie are doing free deliveries too. Take care and stay safe in this horrible time x
If you type your post code and put 'mutual aid coronavirus' in this brings up groups set up around the country for local community support. I've done this it's a great source of information and support. All the volunteers need to be DBS checked.
hi, quick update, had an email from Asda yesterday saying government have identified me as vulnerable and needing support. I now have a weekly priority shopping slot until Oct 4th xx
Quick update, I've now had an email from ASDA with the same priority confirmation so I'm assuming you get to choose one supplier to order from for the foreseeable future.
Today I received an email from Asda to say they've been informed that I'm extremely vulnerable and they've given me a priority pass, though there aren't any free delivery slots on their website at the moment. I think that all you can do is to register with as many supermarkets as possible and just keep your fingers crossed that there will be available delivery slots eventually.
Maybe you got a different email to the one I received because mine doesn't mention you can only register with one company. I was told that you will automatically be registered with any supermarket if you are on their mailing list or belong to their loyalty scheme. My Asda email says "You may hear from other supermarkets too and you can choose who you want to shop with - but please only choose one".
But it doesn't say to only register with one, just to choose only one to shop with, which I will if any of them ever open up any priority delivery slots - unfortunately none who have me registered as an extremely vulnerable person have any available delivery slots in my area but the first one that does will be my supermarket of choice.
I was advised by a supermarket helpline that unless you register as a customer with supermarkets, none of them will contact you. The helpline operator advised me to make sure my contact details were up-to-date with any supermarkets I was already registered with and to join as many new supermarket loyalty schemes as possible. Registering as a customer with multiple supermarkets isn't the same as ordering from multiple supermarkets but registering (or already being registered) with multiple supermarkets will maximise the potential of being contacted by at least one of them. If you are fortunate enough to be contacted by more than supermarket, that's the time to choose which one you will use.
Hi just got mine from Asda, shopped online with Morrison’s for 6 years but nothing from them. Hope u all get sorted with a deliver slot feel like I have won the lottery. All stay safe .
I couldn't believe I felt quite so euphoric! I got the same email from ASDA last night, booked a slot and shopped early this morning. Sadly despite the letter Sainsbury wasn't showing any available slots, ASDA had just 3 in 10 days time so I grabbed one quickly.
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Clinically vulnerable - c'est moi! I think. 
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