Sent on behalf of:

Abu Bah – Engagement Lead, Thamesmead Moorings

Khadijah Ahmed – Engagement Lead, Plumstead and Glyndon

Spresa Dibrani – Engagement Lead, Charlton

Rahman Famuditimi – Engagement Lead, Woolwich

Apologies that this week’s message is arriving a couple of days late.

We hope that you’re finding these weekly updates helpful. Some of the information included, around how to stay safe, where to get tested, and the support available, will be similar every week. However, each update will also include a different ‘hot topic’ which will be relevant to the current situation, plus an updated statistic for the local Greenwich area. 

 As before, we would really like to encourage you to share the following​ information through:

1. friends or family who live in your area
2. local networks
3. neighbour or community groups you may be members of
4. with people who you come into regular contact with through your work or local groups

If you haven’t already, it would be really helpful if you could take a couple of minutes to fill out this survey, which allows us to understand how widely this Community Update is being used, and whether it is reaching everyone it needs to. Click here to access the short survey.

KEY MESSAGES 04/03/2021

 

Although there is light at the end of the tunnel with the Government’s roadmap out of lockdown, for now, please remember to stay at home as much as possible so restrictions can safely and slowly be lifted.

 

It has never been more important to take every measure we can to fight the virus. Everyone needs to stay at home, except for essential activities. If you do need to leave home: Wear a mask. Make space. Wash your hands.

 

You can read all the details about Lockdown on the official website here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/national-lockdown-stay-at-home

 

We are working with DG Cities, the council's innovation company, to understand how not having access to digital services is impacting the community during the pandemic. A part of their work is to improve connection to digital services for groups across the borough.

Ed Houghton is their Head of Research and is looking to speak to local leaders about digital access through COVID-19 in particular to understand:

·   Barriers to using online services for different groups

·   If someone wants to go online, what they need to do this, and views of those who choose not to go online

·   Type of connectivity and devices that different groups use (e.g. WiFi access quality, tablet access)

·   Digital skills and training required

Community leaders, community centre managers, volunteers and members of the community are all invited to take part. Individuals or groups are welcome - all interviews will be conducted online.

Interview slots are available between the 22nd of February and 12th of March. The call will take between 20-40 minutes.

If you'd like to take part in the research,  please get in touch with Ed - ed.houghton@dgcities.com  

Over 20 million people in the country have had their coronavirus vaccine, and this number is continuing to increase which is brilliant. The more people that get the vaccine, the quicker that life can start getting back to normal. The age bracket has recently changed, so if you are 60 years old or over, you can book your vaccine online here.

It’s important to remember that although both doses of the vaccine will reduce your chance of becoming seriously ill with coronavirus, we still don’t know whether it stops you from passing on the virus without realising it (although we do expect it to reduce this risk).

Evidence also suggests that protection from antibodies doesn’t kick in until around 12 days after you’ve had the first dose, but after around 3 weeks, there should be a good amount of protection until you get your 2^nd dose and get the full benefit of the vaccine. So, it is still important to follow the guidance to protect those around you.

To protect yourself and your family, friends and colleagues, you still need to:

• stay 2 metres from people not in your household
• wear a face mask
• wash your hands carefully and frequently

For frequently asked questions and more information about the coronavirus vaccine, please visit selondonccg.nhs.uk/what-we-do/covid-19/covid-19-vaccine.

 

Most people experience grief when they lose someone important to them. It affects everyone differently. There's no right or wrong way to feel.

You may be finding it particularly difficult at the moment because of the changes in place to try to stop the spread of coronavirus.

Changes have been made to several services, including end of life and palliative care, as well as funeral arrangements.

You may feel that you need some extra help and support during this time. There are local places that can help, such as Greenwich Cruse Bereavement Centre, Greenwich and Bexley Hospice as well as national helplines such as Samaritans and Sudden. 

Live Well Greenwich has lots of helpful links that can hopefully help you during this difficult time.

1 in 3 people have coronavirus without knowing, so to reduce the spread, you can now get tested whether you have symptoms or not. The more people that get tested, the more we can prevent the spread of this virus.

Rapid test
If you don’t have symptoms, you can get a rapid test. Anyone can get one of these. If you have to leave your home regularly, it’s recommended you get a rapid test 2-3 times a week. It only takes 5 mins and results are emailed to you in 30 mins. Visit www.royalgreenwich.gov.uk/rapidtest to book.

Test if you have symptoms
If you have coronavirus symptoms (fever, new continuous cough or a loss of sense of smell or taste), no matter how mild, get a test. These tests can only be taken if you have symptoms and it takes a bit longer for you to get the results – usually a few days.

Booking is essential. Order a home test kit if you cannot get to a test site. Go to gov.uk/get-coronavirus-test, or call 119.

Please see below for information on where you can get both types of coronavirus tests in the borough:

Testing is NOT available at the Emergency Department at the hospital or at your GP practice, so please do not attend here trying to get a test. 

If your test result is positive, you and your household will need to stay at home and self-isolate for 10 days. (This has changed from 14 days). This is important to stop the virus spreading and to keep your community safe.

This can be stressful and worrying when you need to go to work. If you are unable to claim sick-pay from your employer and are a low income household, a one-off £500 payment may be available from the Government to support you and your family during these 10 days. Find out if you are eligible to apply for this payment or call 0800 470 4831.

If you’re interested in helping your community through volunteering, a short training is available to introduce and prepare volunteers for the role of Neighbourhood Champion. This is an opportunity to learn, ask questions, share information and practice.

For more information, please email victoria.smith@royalgreenwich.gov.uk. 

If you think it would be helpful to share these messages via WhatsApp or text message, we have a shorter version available for this purpose. If you would like this, please let us know your mobile number and we can share this with you for you to forward on – please email robin.clarke@royalgreenwich.gov.uk directly with this information.