TALBOT Heath School in Bournemouth has answered the national call for education centres to make PPE by producing facemasks and scrubs for healthcare workers.

Although staff have had difficulties gathering the correct designs and materials, they have now sourced the desired supplies.

Talbot Heath School is part of a voluntary group called 3DCrowd UK, whose aim is to contribute face shields towards the NHS shortfall of 345,000.

Head of design at the school, Andy Morris, and technician Moray Dobree-Carey, who has been operating the 3D printer and overseeing overnight prints, have managed to speed up their production process by converting to a laser cutter.

Andy said: “We have reached around 30 at the moment and we have set a target of 60 PPE through our 3D printer. It is still early stages for us.

“Doing overnight means that we are able to make four masks in 17 hours, but when we are able to make them on our laser cutter, we will be able to produce much more in the same amount of time.

“We will be able to make one every few minutes instead of every few hours, but anything we can do to help at the moment is important.”

Talbot Heath School joins a number of schools, colleges and universities across Dorset making PPE, including Bryanston School, Swanage School and Arts University Bournemouth.

Having used up all the school’s 3D printing stock, Talbot Heath set up a crowdfunding page on Saturday with a target of £1,000 to buy raw materials, which they smashed by the end of the day. The school is also helping to produce scrubs for healthcare workers.

The textiles department have sourced the correct material from Fabric Land in Ringwood and will be supplying non-clinical services.

Textile teacher Amanda Heath said: “We have some of the key workers' children in making draw string bags for scrubs. A couple of the students have parents who are doctors and nurses, so they are obviously very aware of what is going on.

“We have got hold of a pattern that we can use but we are now waiting on materials which should be with us on Monday.

“We have quite a few teachers and support staff coming in on Monday so we can begin making as many scrubs as we can.

Headteacher Angharad Holloway added: “Talbot Heath has a history of stepping up in a crisis. Our pupils were nurses on the front line in the First World War, were land girls on local farms in the Second World War and now we are helping in the fight against this global pandemic, using our new technologies to support our health and care workers on the front line.

“We are proud to be able to assist.”

Blandford School’s design and technology department is also producing PPE in response to the 120 requests it has received.

The school was donated polypropylene sheets for face shield bands by Bryanston School, and the local company From Dorset With Love have also donated acetate sheets for the face shields.

Among the health services in need of equipment who have contacted the school are Blandford Hospital, East Dorset District Nurses, Bovington Health Clinic and nurse prescribers working in Weymouth and Gillingham.