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Norfolk County Council, Councillor Vic Thomson’s Report for February 2021Covid and Flood are still the main newsCovid Vaccination Programme - UpdateMessage from Heathgate Medical Practice and Old Mill & Millgates SurgeryOur vaccination programme continues, and we have just completed an eight day run with the vaccinations we have been sent from NHS England. This has seen a further 4,000 patients, from the nine GP Practices we are working with, vaccinated. Most have received the Pfizer vaccination and on Saturday, we were able to provide a larger number of vaccinations across a five-hour window using the Astra Zeneca (Oxford Vaccine) which does not have the licence requirement of a post vaccination 15-minute rest. In line with Government guidance, we continue to focus on patients in patient Cohorts 1 to 4, which are essentially anyone over the age of 70 and those who are on the national shielding (CEV lists). Many of you have also attended for vaccination at one of the mass sites which remains an option if you have received a national letter asking you to book. Your GP record is updated automatically if you attend a non-NHS Centre.The quantity of vaccines we receive locally in any one period is still determined by NHS England, and these are delivered with a short notice period - hence why some of you have been called just days before your appointment.I would stress again that we are restricted to vaccinating patients within the national cohorts and we are still spending several hours explaining to patients why we are unable to step outside this. This is taking a large amount of our receptionist’s time and so would politely request that if you are unsure of your eligibility, please look at the cohort illustration I will post below. We have had many requests for vaccination of carers. Carers fall into Cohort 6 unless they qualify on age grounds ahead of this.You may see national messages from NHS England and the Government later today prompting patients aged 70 or above to book their vaccination as soon as possible. This either through the national online booking service or by calling 119 if you are looking to attend a mass vaccination site such as that in Castle Quarter Shopping Centre in Norwich. We understand the national message will also suggest patients contact their GP to flag if they would like vaccination at a local Centre such as that in Poringland. If you prefer this option, please call us in the afternoon between 2 and 5pm, where we will look to allocate a local appointment where availability allows. Our lines may be busy and so you could E Mail us instead using our Practice E Mail addresses which can be found on our websites. We can then contact you with an appointment. This is a change of message from us locally, but a new national steer to capture the remaining patients in Cohorts 1 to 4 as local Centres, do not have access to the national booking schedules for those of you opting for the mass Centre sites. Local Centre staff have found they are wasting precious time calling patients who have already booked appointments nationally.This remains a massive task for us all and thank you again for working with us.Garry WhitingManaging PartnerHeathgate Medical PracticeNon Clinical Lead Poringland Vaccination Centre and Sth Norfolk GPM cohort large scale Covid-19 immunisation centres are due to be launched in the region in the coming days as part of the biggest vaccination programme in the history of the NHS.So far, the area has 26 different sites offering jabs to protect against coronavirus, including Norfolk's three main hospitals.There are also 21 primary care network sites such as GP surgeries and community buildings,?one large vaccination centre at Castle Quarter in Norwich, and a single pharmacy in Oulton Broad, Lowestoft.?The Castle Quarter Vaccination Centre in NorwichIt has been announced Norfolk is to get further vaccination centres in the coming days at King's Lynn, Attleborough,?North Walsham, and in Wisbech.The message during vaccination is still to stick to the covid rulesExtra testing rolled out in Norfolk to help prevent spread of coronavirusRapid symptom-free community Covid testing is being rolled out across Norfolk after successful pilots in the east and west of the county.Mobile testing sites are planned in in King’s Lynn, Hunstanton, north Great Yarmouth, Caister, Hemsby and Scratby next week, with further sites expected to go live in parts of South Norfolk and Norwich towards the end of the week.Symptom-free residents in these areas will be able to book a Covid 19 test online at:? can also visit the sites during their testing hours without an appointment to request a test.Further symptom-free testing sites will then roll out across the county in the coming weeks and will be targeted at areas where the virus is spreading or where there is greater risk of transmission. When the future sites are announced, residents in their areas will be made aware and will be able to book via the above link.Rapid-turnaround lateral flow tests provide results within 30 minutes and are used to proactively test those without symptoms. This helps to identify those who unknowingly have the virus and enable those who test positive and their contacts to self-isolate, which can help drive down the R rate locally and save lives. ?Dr Louise Smith, Director of Public Health for Norfolk, said: “One in three people with coronavirus have no symptoms, which means they can be spreading the virus without knowing. These rapid tests help us to find these people so that we can break the train of transmission.“We have already piloted the testing in King’s Lynn and Great Yarmouth and are now rolling out sites to areas in each district where the virus is most prevalent. The aim is to identify those who might be carrying and spreading the virus without knowing it, so that we can help reduce the spread.“Although a negative test might provide some reassurance to people, it is not a guarantee that you don’t have the virus, so if you do visit the test centre and the result is negative please do keep following the national restrictions, as well as following the hands, face and space guidelines. This will help further bring down rates of Covid in our county.”Social distancing and face masks are required at testing sites, except when taking the test. Anyone with symptoms should not use the symptom-free test and should instead book a test via the NHS.Tests on the site will be self-administered with trained staff from Norse observing to ensure that the correct process is followed. The results will be texted or emailed.Those who test positive should isolate immediately and work with national or local contact tracers to identify their close contacts. People no longer need a second test to confirm a positive test from a lateral flow test.A negative Covid test does not mean that someone does not have the virus and those who test negative should continue to follow all of the public health guidelines to protect themselves and others.Those who have been vaccinated are still eligible for lateral flow testing – this will not affect the results.Decisions on where community testing should take place are made by clinicians, who will analyse the latest case rates and risks of transmission.Norfolk’s seven district councils are supporting the roll-out by providing venues and helping to promote the sites locally.Local Flood Risk Management Strategy Review discussed at Cabinet At the January meeting of Cabinet, the Local Flood Risk Management Strategy was discussed against new and emerging national strategies and policies. This has resulted in the proposal of 3 new policies (along with minor updates to our existing policies): Draft Policy 1: Towards Net ZeroDraft Policy 2: Biodiversity and Environmental Net GainDraft Policy 3: Flood Resilience and AdaptionFurther, it was agreed to set up a task force to work with our MPs and other stakeholders to ensure that that Norfolk develops comprehensive, costed and funded plans to meet these challenges. The taskforce aiming to strengthen Norfolk’s resilience to flooding is to be chaired by former head of the British army?Lord Dannatt,With an independent figure?guiding?round-table discussions of?the county and district councils,?Anglian Water, the Environment Agency, internal drainage boards, and others, it is hoped?greater collaboration between the authorities can be fostered.Summary of the Budget discussed at Cabinet on 1st February. Will go before full council on 22nd of march At the Cabinet meeting on 1st February there was discussion around the 2021-22 Budget, which will enable the council to make further significant investment, while addressing continuing severe pressure on services, in order to preserve the delivery of services during the COVID-19 pandemic, including: Adults: ?28.197m of growth pressure (including for the National Living Wage), against planned savings of ?17.858m.Children’s: ?7.014m of growth pressure, against planned savings of ?11.munity and Environmental Services: ?10.512m of growth pressure, against planned savings of ?8.288m.Corporate provision of ?18.829m for short-term COVID-19 pressures.Overall, the Budget therefore includes service growth pressures of over ?45.723m, plus an additional central provision of ?18.829m set aside for COVID-19 in 2021-22, representing a continued sustained and significant investment in maintaining and strengthening the council’s key services, while simultaneously providing the maximum possible resources to address ongoing COVID-19 costs expected to continue into 2021-22.Streetlight upgrades light the way to carbon reduction in 2021Upgrades to 15,000 main road streetlights across Norfolk, starting in 2021, is the next step in a successful scheme that has already seen CO2 emissions cut by 1,200 tonnes as a result of a move to LED technology over the last two years.More than 39% of all the streetlights that are owned by Norfolk County Council have now received an upgrade with the next 15,000 set to add to that total starting early in the New Year.Over the last two years more than 11,000 lights have received an upgrade in a project that has seen Norfolk County Council receive national recognition for its work, alongside partner Amey, receiving the CIHT East of England Sustainability Award in 2019.For each street that is upgraded to LED lights the average percentage energy saving is over 70%. Many of the LEDs can also be controlled remotely saving on staff time and travel.?1m needed to tackle ash dieback over next two yearsCouncillors are set to call for national funding to help manage the effects of ash dieback.A report presented to the County Council’s January Cabinet provided an update on the ongoing work, at a local and national level, to tackle the worsening problem of the disease threatening one of the country’s favourite trees.Expert studies now suggest that by 2023 half of all the 168,000 roadside ash trees in Norfolk will have advanced decline. Most of those ash trees are privately owned with just 20,200 owned by the County Council.It’s estimated that the cost of carrying out tree safety work, key biodiversity enhancement projects, strategic habitat restoration, awareness raising among landowners, inspecting and reporting, will be ?1m over the next two years.?Carbon reduction plans unveiledWide-ranging plans to reduce the County Council’s carbon emissions from 11.6 million tonnes per year to zero by 2030 have been unveiled.Tree planting, support for green transport and the use of the Burlingham Estate to demonstrate environmental good practice are among the measures being taken by Norfolk County Council.Last year, the Council adopted an environment policy. An update report to the Council’s Cabinet reveals a series of measures are underway, including:Plans to plant one million trees over five years, working with partners, communities, and landownersA??1.5m investment in active travel, including cycling and walkingDevelopment of plans to demonstrate environmental best practice on the County Council’s Burlingham EstateWork with Norwich City Council and UK Power Networks on on-street electric car charging pointsFurther work to install LED streetlights across NorfolkMajor highway improvement schemes starting in 2021A multi-million pound programme of road maintenance will continue into 2021 with major schemes getting underway in Great Yarmouth, Downham Market and Stalham.The improvements have been made possible thanks to the ?22m highway funding for Norfolk that the Department for Transport announced in May 2020, to fund schemes in the 2020-21 financial year.Norfolk received more than any other local authority in the East of England for maintenance and repairs to the county’s roads, bridges, pavements, and cycle paths.At ?1.2m the mechanical and electrical upgrades for the 90-year-old Haven Bridge in Great Yarmouth is the largest scheme to be funded as part of the ?22m programme. Some upgrade works were completed in the autumn, but other work, which will resolve many of the issues caused by the lifting bridge’s ageing equipment, is set to start in February and is expected to take 13 weeks to complete.wo key resurfacing schemes are due to be starting in March with a ?140,000 scheme in Downham Market to resurface the approach to the level crossing on the A1122, and in Stalham, Stepping Stone Lane will be resurfaced at a cost of ?165,000. Across the county the maintenance work will not only repair roads but help to prevent potholes opening-up in the future.The ?22m funding award is in addition to Norfolk County Council’s existing highways capital maintenance budget of ?38.6m for the year 2020-2021. Two other major road resurfacing schemes on the A1066 near Thetford, and A1122 near Marham were also made possible by a successful bid for ?3.5m from the Department for Transport’s Challenge Fund, which was confirmed in February 2020.Service expanded to further stem the spread of Covid-19A support service is being substantially expanded in the west of the county to help more residents affected by Covid-19 to isolate.Previously only those who had tested positive for the virus would be contacted by teams from local councils with offers of support. Now the service will expand welfare checks and support to include some of those people who have been asked to isolate by NHS Test and Trace because they are contacts of positive Covid cases.Led by Norfolk’s Public Health and Community Resilience county-wide partnership working which includes the county’s seven city, district, borough councils, the service aims to further bolster efforts to control the virus by making sure people have support in place so they can stay at home and isolate safely. Plans are currently being made by other local councils to expand support in a similar way in the coming weeks.Free school meal scheme to continue during February half termNorfolk County Council has extended its free school meal voucher scheme to make sure no child goes hungry this February half term.A child from a family that receives benefits is eligible for a ?15 voucher for the week.The last time the voucher scheme ran over the Christmas period, Norfolk County Council issued more than 27,000 vouchers and we are estimating the uptake will be similar this half term.Schools can order the supermarket gift cards for pupils using an online service and families can receive the codes by email to redeem themselves or as a gift card provided by post, collection or delivery to families without internet access.Some schools may also be offering food parcels, parents and carers should contact their school office to see what they are providing.Every Child Online campaign launchedA new campaign which aims to ensure every school age child has a digital device and internet connection to learn remotely at home has been launched.Norfolk County Council is working with Norfolk Community Foundation (NCF) on the campaign backed by the EDP newspaper to make sure no child is left behind in their learning because of digital disadvantage.The campaign gives two ways to step up and help:Businesses and organisations can give pre-used corporate devices to the county council for refurbishment and distribution to schools. To donate email?devices@.ukThe county council has already co-ordinated the sourcing, prioritisation, and distribution of approximately 2,000 laptops and tablets, either directly to youngsters or to their schools – 500 of which have been directly provided by the council.Families that are struggling with home learning have a new place to turn to for advice and support. Norfolk Libraries has set up a phone line which serves as a first stop for parents and carers in the county using new devices to teach their children.The phone line aims to provide a friendly voice to families that aren’t familiar with home learning technology, including those that have received a new laptop or tablet as a result of Norfolk County Council’s ‘Every Child Online’ campaign.The campaign is being run by the county council, in partnership with Norfolk Community Foundation backed by the Eastern Daily Press newspaper.It aims to ensure every child has a digital device and internet connection to learn remotely at home to make sure they are not left behind in their learning because of digital disadvantage.When dialling the Norfolk Libraries phone line, parents and carers can expect some support with getting set up for home learning and advice as to where to get further help or help to improve their own skills. If a family has any questions relating to the curriculum, they can contact their school directly.“I am delighted that the libraries service has stepped in to be that friendly voice on the other end of the phone for parents and carers supporting their children learning from home. It sends an important message to families that they are not alone.”“It is undoubtedly a challenge to adjust to the ‘new normal’ of accessing education at home so I’m pleased that we can do our bit to make the process as straight forward as possible and provide parents and carers with another place to turn for support.”Janet Holden, Head of?Libraries?and Information at the county council said: “The library service is pleased to be able to offer this support to families learning at home. We are used to helping people with online services and can provide support for those who are not very confident with their digital skills.“If you are unsure about how to use the equipment or where to look once you have set it up, this friendly team of library staff will do their best to help you. Please do not hesitate to call us.”If anyone needs help using online services, they can speak to a member of library staff on 01603 774777 from 10am-6pm Monday to Friday and 10am-4pm on Saturdays.People can also register for?Learn My Way?and enter the name of their local library in the ‘Centre’ box for free online learning. For help downloading eBooks or using other library services online, email?libraries.iconnect@.uk.Adult Learning also have a range of?free online courses?for people wanting to improve their digital skills.0127000Our libraries may be closed but they’re still running lots of online activities this half-term!8-11-year olds can take part in a free code club taster workshop on Zoom to create simple games, plus lovely story sessions twice a week and live Lego club every fortnight for all ages to read together or share their creations. Visit bikes Key workers in Norwich will be able to use the city's bike sharing service for free during the current lockdown, the firm operating it has announced.Beryl, along with Norwich based digital agency Selesti, has?launched an initiative which will allow key workers to use its bikes and e-scooters without charge.The firm said the scheme aimed to increase transport choices for people who still had to get around for work during lockdown, making it easier to maintain social distancing.Bay-to-bay rides will be free for up to an hour on a bike and 30 minutes on an e-scooter.Key workers can access the scheme by downloading the Beryl app, which is available on both the Apple and Android stores.ScamsScam Alert – Watch out for COVID-19 fake productsScam Alert – Fake?COVID-19 Vaccine emailsRogue Trader Alert – Doorstep Cold Callers in the Hellesdon areaScam Alert – Fake courier emailsScam Alert –?Automated telephone cold calls claiming to be from ‘Inland Revenue’Food Alert - Sainsburys, Co-op, Asda and Waitrose recall chilled and frozen seafood products due to possible contamination with salmonella?Safety Alert - Primark recalls two items of their jewellery, Body Bar (white)?2064701?& Nose Piercing 5pk (yellow)?4102702, due to higher levels of Nickel than is permittedScam Alert – Telephone cold calls claiming to be from ‘Amazon’Cold Calling Alert – Telephone cold calls regarding ‘loft insulation’Scam Alert – Fake?COVID-19 Vaccine emailsScam Alert – Fake HMRC text messagesRogue Trader Alert – Doorstep Cold Callers offering to sell & lay gravel in the Dereham?areaFood Alert - Waitrose recalls their 'Waitrose Patisserie Carrot Cake Muffins' (in packs of two) as due to an error on the label, nuts (walnuts) are not declared, which if consumed by someone with a nut allergy could cause illnessSafety Alert -?Ecover is recalling bottles of their ‘Ecover Zero Non Bio Laundry Liquid 1.5 Litres’ with two specific batch codes due to safety concerns that the affected?bottles contain potassium hydroxide at hazardous levels that can cause the bottle to leak. Contact with the liquid could result in harm to skin and eyes, including causing skin burns or eye damageScam Alert – Emails claiming to be from ‘BT’ – 11 February 2021Scam Alert – Scam Callers claiming to be Police Officers – 10 February 2021Scam Alert – Online scammers selling Pets – 09 February 2021Rogue Trader Alert – Doorstep Cold Callers offering to clean driveways in the Hethersett area – 5 February 2021Product Recall - B&Q: GoodHome Colenso 2000W White Freestanding Fan heater?(on sale between September 2020 and January 2021)Allergy Alert - Waitrose recalls Patisserie Carrot Cake Muffin 2S because of undeclared walnuts (nuts)Scam Alert – Emails claiming to be from ‘BT’Scam Alert – Scam callers claiming to be Police OfficersScam Alert – Online scammers selling petsRogue Trader Alert – Doorstep Cold Callers offering to clean driveways in the Hethersett areaSafety Alert - B&Q: GoodHome Colenso 2000W White Freestanding Fan heater (on sale between September 2020 and January 2021)?– Risk of electric shock and fireSafety Alert – Herobility recalls their ‘Eco Place Mat Feeding Set’ (Blue/Pink/Mist Grey) sold at T K Maxx & Homesense ................
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