Chris Townsend takes unpaid role to ensure clinically vulnerable get the ‘vital food they need’

• Townsend was previously commercial director for both the London 2012 Olympic Games and Chelsea Football Club

• He is volunteering three months of his time to lead the government’s shield programme

Former London 2012 Olympic Games commercial director Chris Townsend has been appointed by government to lead the “huge effort” to ensure clinically vulnerable people advised to shield receive the “vital food and medicine they need”.

Townsend has left his job as commercial director at Chelsea Football Club and volunteered three months of his time to lead the programme in the unpaid role.

About 1.5 million people fall into the “extremely clinically vulnerable” group in England, who have been told by the NHS that they must avoid any face-to-face contact for a period of at least 12 weeks.

They have been advised not to leave the house for any reason, including for food shopping. Many have requested support in getting food, and around 250,000 are receiving free boxes of essential food.

The supermarkets are also working to provide them with priority online delivery slots.

“In these unprecedented times, delivering support on this scale to protect the most vulnerable is a huge and evolving task bringing together national and local government and the food industry,” the government said in a statement.

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Before joining Chelsea Football Club in 2017, Townsend was CEO of Broadband Delivery UK, part of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and responsible for administering public funding for the rollout of broadband.

Townsend said he was “determined to do all I can to ensure those most at risk get the support they need”.

Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick MP said: “Our number one priority is ensuring the health and wellbeing of everyone during the coronavirus emergency and Chris brings a wealth of experience with him as he steps in to oversee our shielding programme”.

Referring to Townsend’s tenure as commercial director for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Jenrick added: “He knows exactly what it takes to recreate the unity and community spirit needed to deliver this vital programme of support to the clinically vulnerable.”