The UK Covid-19 Inquiry is in Bristol for the first time next week. Local people are being invited to share their pandemic experiences with the inquiry in person.
The inquiry team is coming to the city as part of a series of nationwide Every Story Matters community events. These allow members of the public to meet the team and share first-hand how the pandemic affected them.
The UK Covid-19 Inquiry has so far heard from over 54,000 people across the UK at in locations from Llandudno to Luton, Oban to Exeter and Enniskillen to Folkestone. The inquiry will be arriving into Bristol on Tuesday, February 11 and Wednesday, February 12.
It will be at The Galleries shopping centre on both days from 10.30am until 5.30pm. Members of the public will be able to speak to Inquiry staff to find out more about Every Story Matters and share their experience of the pandemic in a variety of different ways.
Inquiry Secretary Ben Connah said: “We are thrilled to be in Bristol for our Every Story Matters event and we can’t wait to hear from as many people as possible. To date we have had over 54,000 contributions from the public.
“Each has been unique – the pandemic affected everyone differently and this is your chance to have your voice heard and help inform our investigation. At our Every Story Matters event, people can come down to the Galleries in Broadmead to meet with the Inquiry team, to have a chat and to tell their story.
“It’s incredibly important that local people get the chance to inform the work we’re doing. You don’t need an appointment and our staff will be available to listen and help you in any way.
“We have visited over 20 towns and cities across the UK and will soon be closing submissions for Every Story Matters – this is your last chance to contribute to this massive, and vitally important, listening exercise.”
Counsellors will be present to provide emotional support for those who may need it. Every Story Matters is the largest public engagement exercise ever undertaken by a UK public inquiry.
It supports the UK Covid-19 Inquiry’s legal investigations by providing evidence about the human impact of the pandemic on the UK population. This will help Inquiry chair Baroness Hallett make recommendations for the future.