Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Government announcement 22 September 2020

• workers should work from home where possible
• all pubs, bars and restaurants must be table service only and must close at 10pm from Thursday 24 September
• the requirement to wear a face covering has now extended to staff in retail, staff in hospitality and passengers in taxis
• weddings are now limited to 15 people, funerals remain at a limit of 30 people

Website: PM Commons statement on coronavirus: 22 September 2020 (opens in a new window)

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The NHS COVID-19 app is now live and available for everyone to use

 

The app has a number of tools to protect you, including contact tracing, local area alerts and venue check-in. Website: Download the app for free now (opens in a new window)

It is vital for venues within hospitality, leisure, tourism, close contact services, local authority venues and places of worship to display a QR Code. Website: Businesses information and resources from NHS (opens in a new window)

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Care Home visits across the county

Extra Care and Supported Living will be subject to the same restrictions.Families across Worcestershire are being asked not to visit loved ones in care homes, to protect them from Covid-19. Our Public Health teams have taken the precautionary decision to close visits to all care homes with immediate effect. Only essential or compassionate visits will be allowed.

Dr. Kathryn Cobain, Director for Public Health for Worcestershire said: “ We have been assessing the situation in Worcestershire very closely. The decision to stop care home, extra care and supported living visits is a difficult one to take. We have tried to balance the emotional health and wellbeing of our residents, with keeping them safe from Covid. By stopping visits county wide, we are acting to protect our vulnerable residents from the virus.

I appreciate this will be upsetting and frustrating for families and I want to reassure you that we have acted to save lives. We will continue to review this situation. For now this is a sensible precautionary measure, it is better to act sooner rather than later. “ News article: Care Homes across the county to be halted

Update from Dr Kathryn Cobain the Director for Public Health in Worcestershire:

We are seeing an increase in cases in some parts of Worcestershire. This is in line with other parts of the country, including some of close neighbours. We continue to monitor and assess the Covid-19 cases each day and follow our outbreak control plan. We will introduce measures and actions to protect residents where needed. 
 
It is really important for us all to keep going right now and not to be complacent. Covid-19 is still with us, in our communities and the places we visit. We all want to beat this virus and we can do it, if we follow the advice. It is up to each one of us to do our bit by hand washing, using face coverings where necessary and keeping our distance. They are simple measures but they do work.

We can all help control the virus if we all stay alert

This means you must:

• stay at home as much as possible
• work from home if you can
• limit contact with other people
• keep your distance if you go out (2 metres apart where possible)
• wash your hands regularly

Website: Coronavirus (COVID‑19) from GOV.UK (opens in a new window)

There is more information about what you can and cannot do on the FAQs on the gov.uk website (opens in new window).

Who can I contact if I can't find the information I need?

If you have a query or issue that cannot be addressed within the guidance, please do not hesitate to contact the Health Protection Team at Public Health England:

Website: Public Health England (opens in a new window)

Telephone: 0344 225 3560

Telephone out of hours: 01384 679031