Keeping busy during lockdown, the council’s Chairman, Cllr Mrs Pauline Allen, is making the most of her needlework skills by creating these useful and re-usable wash bags.
Along with members of the Stitch and Knit group and the Craft Club, Pauline has personally produced more than 60 wash bags which have been distributed to local care homes and hospitals for use by NHS personnel and carers.
Bickenhill Household Waste Recycling Centre (HWRC) will reopen on Monday 18 May – but residents are being warned to expect significant queues and are asked to think very carefully about whether a trip is really essential.
In order to follow social distancing guidance, only five cars will be allowed in at a time and only one person will be allowed to leave each car to remove waste. Site users should also ensure that they can unload and carry their waste themselves as the site staff will be unable to provide assistance.
Nobody should visit the site if they are showing symptoms of Covid-19, are self-isolating or belong to a vulnerable group. A trip to the site should only be taken when waste cannot be stored safely at home and presents a public health risk.
Cabinet Member for Environment and Highways Cllr Ken Hawkins said: “We have restored bulky waste collections and by Monday 18 May all our residents will have had a garden waste collection which we hope will minimise the need to visit our HWRC. In reopening the site, we’re asking people to think very seriously about whether they really need to make the trip and to behave responsibly.
“Reopening the site is not a signal to start spring cleaning. Producing additional waste at this time will add significant pressure to the service which is already under strain during the pandemic and unnecessary visits could pose unnecessary health risks for front line staff at the site.”
A visit to Bickenhill HWRC should only be made when storage of excess household waste cannot be done safely at home and all traffic management and social distancing instructions should be adhered to.
Holders of HWRC vehicle permits should wait for further guidance about times to visit the site.
For further information – https://www.solihull.gov.uk/Resident/Rubbish-recycling/recyclingcentres
Beware of these scams taking advantage of the coronavirus pandemic…
Remember:
YOUR DOORSTEP, YOUR DECISION
If you feel pressured, ask the person to leave
FRIENDS AND FAMILY ARE BEST
Support from trusted friends, family or neighbours is ideal. Be vigilant for strangers offering services at the door
NO SNAP DECISIONS
Take time to talk to someone you trust before you make any decisions
DO THE CHECKS
You can check ID badges and contact employers to check they are who they say they are. Call the organisation, but find the number yourself.
You can REPORT TO:
Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline 0808 223 1133
Action Fraud 0300 123 2040
Police 111
Solihull Council will begin garden waste collections from Monday 4 May, following their postponed start due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
Residents can check their collection calendar to find out which week their collection will start.
Cllr Ken Hawkins, Cabinet Member for Environment & Highways, explains: “I know many residents have been looking after their gardens and enjoying the lovely weather while we are all staying at home, so am delighted that we are now able to start the garden waste collections.
“Thank you to everyone for their patience so far, but please do bear with us at this challenging time as the service may continue to be affected by Covid-19.
“I appreciate residents will be keen to have all their garden waste removed on their first collection, but encourage everyone to please follow a few simple steps to help our crews safely manage the garden waste.
“These include not overfilling or compacting waste in your bin and staying two metres away from our crews. We also cannot take any additional green waste, only what is contained in your bin, so please save any additional waste for the next collection.
“Thank you again for your patience and support for our crews.”
Full details of the simple steps and advice are available on our website, along with further information about how collections may be impacted by Covid-19.
Doing her bit for the NHS, here is a selection of the 30+ wash bags created by the parish council’s Chairman, Cllr Mrs Pauline Allen.
Have you seen the residents of 25 Beechcroft Open Space lately?
Cemeteries in Solihull
COVID-19 update
Update on funerals and cemeteries 21 April
The Prime Minister announced on Monday 23 March that, excluding funerals, all social events must now be stopped in order to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus).
Following discussions across the region, Solihull Council along with most councils in the West Midlands, will be permitting up to ten mourners to attend a funeral. In accordance with the government’s guidelines this should usually be from the deceased’s household or close family.
In response to the Secretary of State’s announcement on 18 April, the three cemeteries in Solihull will be open at weekends from 9.00am to 6.00pm. This will allow for personal visits to graves and memorials. Social distancing guidance should be followed and visitors should not gather at a cemetery.
There has been a significant increase in the number of funerals recently. To ensure the safety of mourners, cemeteries will remain closed from Monday to Friday, other than for those attending a funeral. Waiting rooms, Book of Remembrance rooms and memorial rooms remain closed at all times.
Mourners are welcome to use mobile phones to film and share funeral services with those not able to attend, using media platforms such as Facebook Live provided they have permission from the funeral applicant and the officiant/minister.
Memorial sales, memorial headstone permitting, buying graves in reserve, scatterings and cremated remains interments are all suspended until further notice.
More information here
News and Updates from Warwickshire Community and Voluntary Action wcava.org.uk
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Here to Help Solihull
Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council’s “here to help” pages have been updated with new information and links on the Shielding programme, Help with Food, Money Advice, How to Stay Well, How to Stay Safe, and How to Volunteer Safely. Please see: Here 2 Help
Supermarket opening times
Many supermarkets are offering priority shopping times to key workers, carers and the vulnerable. Check your local store for details.
ASDA
Larger stores – NHS and care workers are prioritised every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8am to 9am, and Sundays 9am to 10am for browsing
Co-op Vulnerable, elderly or NHS persons hour from 8-9am Mon-Sat and 10-11am on Sunday
Iceland First hour for elderly and vulnerable, last hour for NHS staff
Marks & Spencer Mon and Thurs first hour for vulnerable and elderly, Tues and Fri first hour for NHS and emergency services
Morrisons 7-8am on Saturdays for NHS Staff
Sainsburys Mon, Weds and Fri 8-9am for elderly, vulnerable and NHS staff
Tesco Mon, Weds and Fri 9-10am for elderly and vulnerable (not in Tesco express)
Waitrose Mon and Thus first hour for elderly and vulnerable
Call out for Foodbank Donations
As the Coronavirus pandemic unfolds, Foodbanks are seeing a rapid increase in demand, and, in many cases, a fall in donations as many of the organisations who regularly donate food have had to close.
Kingfisher Foodbank at Auckland Hall in Smiths Wood is asking for donations. These can be dropped in to Auckland Hall, Sunbeam Close, Smiths Wood, B36 9JR, between 10.30am–12 noon. Alternatively, you can pop a donation into their crate at Asda, Chelmsley Wood or Tesco, Hodge Hill.
Kingfisher Foodbank is particularly short of the following items:
• Milk
• Tinned Tomatoes
• Tinned Fruit
• Tinned Meat
• Tinned Fish
• Also any toiletries would be welcome including nappies size 5.
They also have started a Crowdfunder to cover shortages: Kingfisher Foodbank crowdfunder
Health and Wellbeing
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Ask A&E
Ask A&E is an interactive tool that lets you get NHS answers when you need them, 24/7. Now featuring a built-in COVID-19 care assistant, Ask A&E offers you rapid NHS answers you can trust to help you decide what to do next. You can now monitor your symptoms and the COVID-19 care assistant will allow people who need to consult a healthcare professional to do so using a video chat function.
The care assistant can be found at https://www.uhb.nhs.uk/ask
Children’s Guide to Coronavirus
The Children’s Commissioner has produced a guide that aims to answer children’s questions about coronavirus, tell children how to stay safe and protect other people and how to help them make the best of their time at home.
Please follow this link.
Young People and Coronavirus
UK Youth has published a report into the impact of COVID-19 on the youth sector (during and after the pandemic). Please follow this link
UK Youth has also published a number of useful resources to help youth workers and young people to keep calm, stay connected and be safe.
For more info please see: https://www.ukyouth.org/covid-19/
Domestic Abuse
During lockdown, there may be an increased risk of domestic abuse. For information on the support available in Solihull and the West Midlands please see:
https://www.solihull.gov.uk/Resident/crimeandemergencies/Domestic-abuse
Volunteering
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Advice on DBS checks and volunteering
The Government released its latest advice on volunteering relating to criminal records, personal care and medical volunteering activities and expired DBS checks.
More info
Volunteering on furlough
The NCVO have released information on the Government’s position, outlining that people on furlough can volunteer but with some restrictions.
Read more
Volunteer shopping cards at Asda
For volunteers going to Asda to get food for people, the supermarket have launched a volunteer shopping card to help make things easier:
More info
Volunteer drivers and car insurance
Some good news: the Association of British Insurers (ABI) have said that COVID-19 volunteers don’t need to adjust their insurance to make deliveries.
See more
Stay home, protect our NHS and save lives!
Keep up the applause for key workers
I understand many will be upset or anxious at the thought of the “Stay at home – Save lives” regime continuing, as it almost certainly will when the government makes its decision today. We are going through totally uncharted waters with this crisis. It really does require an extraordinary response from all of us.
On Thursday nights, I hope you are joining me and my wife Sheila, our neighbours and the rest of the country to recognise and celebrate our key workers through the national ‘clap for our carers’ campaign. This started out as a way for us all to recognise and celebrate the role of our NHS workers, but has rapidly become an important, very moving and unmissable weekly event.
This Thursday, the Courts’ household will be banging pans, not only to salute the amazing work of the NHS, but also to recognise the contribution of all key workers; a big thank you to our social care teams, both those who work for the Council, in our care homes and those supporting our local residents in their own homes; a thank you again to every single one of you that is helping us get through this crisis.
We all know how committed and compassionate these workers are and how, in very difficult circumstances, they continue to support local residents and provide care for those who need it most. So clap and bang at 8pm, let them hear us!
As well as expressions of gratitude, I know many of you are finding other ways to contribute to the fight against Covid-19. For instance, I heard this week that one local Rotary Club has donated funds to help a local small business provide PPE for the health workers.
With our fantastically vibrant local voluntary sector, we have jointly produced additional information on our website, to help people through the current period. Here 2 Help offers advice on a range of topics, such as shielding for really vulnerable people; help with food, including food bank deliveries; money advice; how to stay well; how to stay safe and how to volunteer safely.
There are lots of useful contact numbers for local people to use and share with family, friends and their local communities. Please do take a look and see if there is anything that can help you or your community get through the coming weeks.
And something to bring a little normality into parents’ lives is the annual ‘Schools Offer’ day for children starting infant or primary school in September. I am pleased that 89% of parents with children living in Solihull have been offered their first preference, and 98% have been offered one of their preference schools. This was from a total of 2,440 on time applications.
A huge thank you to everyone who has enabled this important process to continue during these challenging times. I am sure this will come as a welcome relief for parents and provide them and their children with a positive outlook for the next few months.
One real problem with this period of social isolation is the disturbing increase in domestic abuse. Here in the West Midlands a multi-agency campaign, #NoExcuseForAbuse, has been launched. Led by Police and victims’ services, it is about sharing information about the services available to victims of domestic abuse: support continues to be available to those who need it.
Calls concerning domestic abuse have fallen, raising concerns amongst professionals that there are many people suffering in silence. They don’t need to; this kind of abuse is never acceptable. Free, confidential advice and support for anyone experiencing domestic abuse is available, listed on our website. If you are in immediate risk you must call 999 and if you can’t speak, press 55 when prompted.
Finally I have mentioned before the proliferation of ‘Fake News’ during the Covid-19 crisis. The recent spate of attacks on 5G masts across the country is evidence of this dangerous phenomenon getting completely out of hand. Mobile phone networks are now absolutely critical to all of us, particularly at a time when we are asking everybody to stay home.
Some misguided individuals need to realise that their actions have real consequences. One of the masts targeted over the weekend provides telecommunication to the Nightingale hospital at the NEC in Solihull. It could result in families not being able to say a final goodbye to their loved ones; hard-working doctors, nurses, social care workers and police officers not being able to phone their kids, partners or parents for a comforting chat.
Please do use trusted sources such as Public Health England and GOV.UK or the Council’s own website www.solihull.gov.uk where you can find a wealth of expert advice and guidance.
Best wishes – stay home and save lives
Councillor Ian Courts, Leader of Solihull Council, 16 April 2020
15 April 2020:
Stay home, protect our NHS and save lives!
Now into our fourth week
Thank you everyone who followed the advice and stayed home this long bank holiday weekend. I understand it was quiet in terms of the number of people going outside to public spaces; from news reports, most people seemed to have followed the social distancing advice.
As we move into our fourth week, the talk in the media all seems to be about how long the lockdown needs to continue. Well, I’m as keen as anyone to get out and about again…but the experts say that we have not reached the peak yet, so it really is premature, and possibly even unhelpful, to speculate about returning to ‘normal’.
We need to continue, as we have done over the past weeks, in the knowledge that our efforts are demonstrably saving lives.
Can I just update on a few pieces of news.
Following discussions at a regional level and reviewing in particular the security situation, I am pleased to say that our bereavement services will now be allowing up to ten mourners, instead of six. This decision was not straightforward, but it was important to build in extra flexibility to recognise the heart-felt wish to attend a loved one’s funeral ceremony.
Those attending are welcome to film and make the funeral service available to those not able to attend (e.g. through Facebook Live and other media platforms), provided permission has been given by the person arranging the funeral and the officiant.
In other news, I just want to draw attention to the wonderful support Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has given to the fight against Covid-19. Not only have they started delivering 3D-printed visors, developed with the NHS for their frontline staff – with the ambition to produce 5,000 a week in the UK. They have also supplied an additional 150 vehicles globally to their humanitarian partners, of which 105 have been supplied to the British Red Cross, taking the total number of vehicles deployed to just over 300.
Also, 14 Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles are currently being used by West Midlands Ambulance Service University NHS Foundation Trust to test staff isolating with coronavirus symptoms. The testing allows the service to support staff with the virus, enabling those who are fit and healthy to return to frontline duties.
This is just one example of local help being given in this crisis.
Whilst JLR remains our biggest employer in the borough, the Council has also focused on other businesses that make up our economy. We have been actively contacting over 1,900 of our small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) to make sure they are accessing whatever relevant support is available.
So far we have received over 1,400 applications for the various grants available to eligible Solihull businesses, as part of the government’s support package. The money is now flowing out to businesses and we are working hard to process all of these payments as quickly as we can. We have also automatically applied Expanded Retail Relief to give eligible businesses 100% relief from their business rates in 2020/21, as a quick and effective way of supporting our local businesses through this pandemic.
Please, keep up social distancing – and stay home, protect the NHS and save lives.
Councillor Ian Courts, Leader of Solihull Council, 14 April 2020
Morrisons
Morrisons has launched a dedicated telesales shopping service offering next day delivery on essential items for the “vulnerable and elderly”. Customers can now order from a list of 47 essential items over the phone and pay for goods with their credit card when their order is delivered.
The “takeaway” menu includes staple items like eggs, milk, pasta and potatoes and customers can refuse items on delivery if they do not match their preferences. This is the latest in a string of new measures introduced by the grocer to ensure “no customer gets left behind” and is aimed specifically at those who may not be comfortable or familiar with shopping online.
The new telephone service will ensure that more people who can’t leave their home to go shopping will be able to get a delivery.”
To order online customers can call 0345 611 6111 and select option five.
Morrisons will now offer 70 “essential household” items via the Deliveroo app from 130 stores across the UK meaning one-in-four households can order from the app.
The service will be available from more than 130 Morrisons stores across the UK, meaning one-in-four households can order “to the door in as little as under 30 minutes”.
The ASK A&E portal which now has a Covid 19 section
Here’s the info:
Ask A&E is an interactive tool that lets you get NHS answers when you need them most, 24/7. Now featuring a built-in COVID-19 care assistant, Ask A&E offers you rapid NHS answers you can trust to help you decide what to do next. You can now monitor your symptoms and the COVID-19 care assistant will allow people who need to consult a healthcare professional to do so using a video chat function. The care assistant can be found at https://www.uhb.nhs.uk/ask
This information has been provided by Solihull MBC.