Rachael Carolan, GC at what3words

The general counsel at location app what3words has taken on an additional, voluntary general counsel position at COVID-19 charity initiative Meals for the NHS.

Rachael Carolan will take up the new role while continuing in her permanent role at what3words, she said. Carolan has been general counsel at location tech company what3words for just over two years, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Meals for the NHS was set up on March 23 in response to the COVID-19 crisis and is a charity initiative which aims to rapidly get meals to the NHS front line, which is dealing with an unprecedented number of patients as the pandemic continues to swell.

In less than two weeks, the initiative has raised over £800,000 and delivered over 15,000 meals to 29 hospitals, according to the group.

Carolan said: "I admired how the team were visibly boosting morale for hundreds of frontline NHS staff, many of whom were completing long shifts on empty stomachs, and how ambitious the team were to deliver to many more hospitals up and down the country.

"I wanted to help them scale up to reach even more during these crucial coming weeks and months."

This follows a spike in pro bono efforts from U.K. law firms that are rallying together as part of a nationwide response to the pandemic. Top firms are donating money, supplies and time to coronavirus causes.

Last month, U.K. GCs told Legal Week that they were keen to see law firms putting efforts into pro-bono initiatives, such as a free webinar for self-employed people.

Women, Influence & Power in Law U.K. 2020 will take place on 16-18 November. Read more about the event here. 

Read More:

Surge in Pro Bono Activity As Top Firms Step Up Coronavirus Efforts

The Most Helpful COVID-19 Advice, According to GCs