Chippenham MP Michelle Donelan has issued a message of encouragement to people in Wiltshire as the country navigates its routemap out of lockdown.

Last March, Ms Donelan announced on her website that she was researching covid response groups and eager to share links and information online.

She has thanked people for their 'sheer resilience' over the 12 months since.

Ms Donelan told the Gazette: "It is hard to comprehend the changes we have had to make to our lifestyles in the last year and I do not take lightly the sacrifices people have made in order to help the country and the NHS deal with the Coronavirus pandemic, which will be the biggest public health emergency in decades.

"It was frustrating to start 2020 with further restrictions when the New Year is normally a time of hope and a “fresh start” but three months on we are in a considerably better place and can look forward to regaining our freedoms later this year.”

But she added: “We are not out of the woods yet, the Prime Minister has laid out a cautious roadmap out of the lockdown and I urge everyone to stick to the rules for a while longer until we can safely return to normality.

The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald: Captain Tom Moore at his home in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire

“When all this is a distant memory, we can look back with an enormous sense of pride in how we have dealt with the pandemic, from the efforts of Captain Tom to the sheer resilience of our communities who have hastily pulled together volunteer groups to seek out those vulnerable and isolating and have sought out new ways to communicate and stay in touch with friends and loved ones.”