'We owe you an enormous debt of gratitude' - unsung hero award given to Banbury carer for his outstanding service to the community during Covid-19 pandemic

Prabhu Natarajan with his six-year-old son Addhu.

A carer from Banbury who has been delivering hundreds of food parcels to families during the Covid pandemic has been given an 'unsung hero' award for his outstanding service to the community.

Prabhu Natarajan was nominated by local residents after initially delivering over 600 grocery items to 25 families in need during the recent lockdown.

Since then, he has delivered food to about 250 families - and helped others in the community in many other ways.

He received the award from MP Victoria Prentis on Tuesday December 22. The MP said in a letter to Prabhu: “Thanks to your hard work and dedication, you have helped make the lockdown periods a little easier for so many.

“We owe an enormous debt of gratitude to all those who, like you, have worked so hard to support their local community.

“Thanks to all you have done for the residents of Banbury, by taking food to those in need and encouraging others to donate items, you have received a nomination.”

Since then, Prabhu has collected over 11,000 more items to provide for families across Banbury which he now distributes on a weekly basis when he’s not working.

He has spent about £400 of his own money to add to funding and donations made by neighbours to supply the goods to 250 families.

Prabhu said: “I have found that when it comes to helping the community, people want to do it, but may not know how to go about it.

“I feel that by doing this I have created some sort of opportunity for people to get involved.

“It’s like a Christmas tree – I am the roots, but it’s what everyone else adds to it that makes it special.”

Prabhu has also dressed up as Santa this year to provide dozens of children with gifts in the run up to Christmas.

With help from two of his neighbours, Prabhu transformed his front garden into a festive grotto, with a selection of toys and treats for the children to take away.

With his son Addhu’s birthday approaching in January, Prabhu decided to give away 112 of his toys in addition to 56 others he purchased to put a smile on the children’s faces.

Prabhu has plans to continue helping the community into the New Year and hopes to support those who are struggling throughout the coronavirus pandemic.