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An amateur photographer who found himself at the centre of the Covid-19 pandemic has told how he documented the response in Newcastle.

Tom Warburton, director of city futures at the council until his recent retirement, has spent almost two years capturing the highs and the lows as the city "really pulled together".

Armed with his camera, he started the project on 16 March 2020 when council managers were called for a briefing at the Civic Centre - the first socially-distanced event they had seen.

One week later, the prime minister announced the first national lockdown.

Registered as a key worker and a keen photographer since he was a teenager, Tom said when Covid arrived he knew it was going to be a "big story".

"We knew it would be a significant episode for the city," he said.

"It was clear to us that the reaction of the local communities, and how the city responded could and would make a real difference."

In the early stages this was the need for emergency food and support to families struggling in lockdown, as well as PPE supply to care homes, and keeping key council services going such as bin collections and social care.

Later, it moved on to preparing the city to reopen safely, economic support for businesses and helping the NHS roll out the vaccination programmes.

In 2021, moving on from capturing the council's response, Tom worked to broaden the range of subjects - visiting hospitals, funeral directors, foodbanks and the vaccination buses.

"The Covid ICU ones are probably the most poignant," he said.

Tom has moved back to Cumbria where he grew up - but the project is continuing.

He would like to photograph stories from the city's faith communities, the education sector, voluntary groups and families of those who lost someone to Covid.

He then hopes to donate the collection to the Tyne and Wear Museum and Archive Service.

Tom said: "I'm glad I've done it. It was on top of my day job and I was actively involved in several of the projects you see photographed, so sometimes I felt overwhelmed by the whole thing.

"But looking back I'm just amazed and immensely proud of the people involved in keeping the city functioning for these two years."

He also paid tribute to the "millions of unsung heroes who just leant in and kept things going" in cities around the world.

All photographs subject to copyright.

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