This week has seen the continued emergence from Lockdown with May 17th heralded as “Hug Day” by some with it being the first joyful opportunity many have had to actually hug those outside of their household.  The Government advised that as of Monday :

• You should continue to work from home if you can. When travelling within the UK, you should aim to do so safely and plan your journey in advance.
• You should get a test and follow the stay at home guidance if you have COVID-19 symptoms.
• Gathering limits have been eased. Outdoor gatherings are limited to 30 people and indoor gatherings are limited to 6 people or 2 households (each household can include a support bubble, if eligible).
• New guidance on meeting friends and family emphasised personal responsibility rather than government rules. Instead of instructing you to stay 2m apart from anyone you don’t live with, you are encouraged to exercise caution and consider the guidance on risks associated with COVID-19 and actions you can take to help keep you and your loved ones safe. Remember that the risks of close contact may be greater for some people than others and in some settings and circumstances, there will be specific guidance that you will need to follow even when you are with friends and family.
• Indoor entertainment and attractions such as cinemas, theatres, concert halls, bowling alleys, casinos, amusement arcades, museums and children’s indoor play areas are permitted to open with COVID-secure measures in place.
• People can attend indoor and outdoor events, including live performances, sporting events and business events. Attendance at these events is capped according to venue type, and attendees should follow the COVID-secure measures set out by those venues.
• Indoor hospitality venues such as restaurants, pubs, bars and cafes can reopen.
• Organised indoor sport can take place for all. This includes gym classes. It must be organised by a business, charity or public body and the organiser must take reasonable measures to reduce the risk of transmission.
• All holiday accommodation can open, including hotels and B&Bs. This can be used by groups of up to 6 or 2 households (each household can include a support bubble, if eligible).
• Funeral attendance is no longer be limited to 30 people, but will be determined by how many people the COVID-secure venue can safely accommodate with social distancing. Limits at weddings, wakes and other commemorative events have been increased to 30 people. Other significant life events, such as bar/bat mitzvahs and christenings, will also be able to take place with 30 people.
• The rules for care home residents visiting out and receiving visitors have changed, allowing up to five named visitors (two at any one time), provided visitors test negative for COVID-19.
• All higher education students are able to access in-person teaching.
• Support groups and parent and child group gathering limits have been increased to 30 people (not including under 5s)
• There is no longer a legal restriction or permitted reason required to travel internationally. A traffic light system for international travel has been introduced, and you must follow the rules when returning to England depending on whether you return from a red, amber or green list country. With The most recent variant known as the Indian variant making the news headlines due to its increased ease of spread and the fast rate of case increases in Bolton Blackburn and Bedford attention has been drawn by the Health Secretary to the fact that those who had to be hospitalised due to Covid Indian Variant had not been vaccinated apart from one very frail case.

Therefore, looking at our county vaccination rate is key as the vaccine roll out continues to progress at a pace.

Updated Figures.
In Warwickshire it remains a hopeful picture from the case rate and vaccine take up perspective.
In the past week there have been 0 new cases of Covid-19 with cumulative cases being 32,175 and deaths in total being 1,069 since the start of the pandemic. 

In Warwickshire our 7 day confirmed cases rate is 12 with our 7 day rolling average reducing to 9.2 which is promising. A comparison is Nuneaton and Bedworth where case numbers have dropped this week to 25 confirmed cases and 19.2 rolling average. 

Our Hospital Bed occupancy is at 85% capacity for general and acute beds with 0 beds with on the wards or in ITU being Covid related occupancy. A comparison is University College Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire where there are 6 cases, 5 Covid Bed occupation with 1 of those being in ITU. They are also at 95% bed occupancy for surgical and acute patients.

Warwickshire Vaccinations: From Dec 8th until this week: Total 329,777 with each age group and percentage of the age group noted:

• Under 40 year olds 20.7%
• 40-49 Year olds 71.6%
• 50-59 Year olds 88%
• 60-69 Year Olds 92%
• 70-79%  Year Olds 96.2%
• Over 80 year olds 96.6%

Also of note is that within the Constituency of Kenilworth and Southam 69.9% of constituents have received at least one vaccine and in Stratford Upon Avon 68.8 % have had at least one vaccine. Within our care homes 95.3% of residents and 85.7 % of care home workers have received at least one vaccine.   
 
As we continue to emerge from lockdown and follow the Roadmap it is with a balanced approach and flexibility to react to any new challenges new variants may bring.
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Please note I now have a WCC phone number which is :07392260141.
My email is: penny-anneodonnell@warwickshire.gov.uk
Stay Safe and Well.
Kindest Wishes
 
Penny-Anne O’Donnell
Wellesbourne Division WCC
Ettington ward member and Chair of Overview and Scrutiny , Vice Chair of Climate Change Panel SDC

​I am truly humbled to have been elected as the County Councillor for the Wellesbourne division in Thursday’s Election and I am sincerely grateful to the voters who have placed their trust in me for the next four years. I am truly thankful to my predecessor Cllr Anne Parry for her support and guidance.
 
I look forward to meeting with you either virtually or in person and working with you and representing you at Warwickshire County Council in the near future. 
 
I will update you with my WCC email and phone number in the next update as I have yet to be assigned these along with my Resident Surgery dates.
 
 
Covid Update:
 
The rate of infections across the district have started to level at 13/100,000 from 11 last week, but there are zero cases which have been reported for the over 60’s over the last seven days, which is terrific news.  Cases when compared to other districts in Warwickshire for all ages is Nuneaton & Bedworth 44/100,000, North Warwickshire 18/100,000, Warwick 19/100,000 and Rugby 31/100,000. 
 
Continuing this positive note, the situation regarding SWFT Hospital Beds has remained at similar levels, there remains just 1 (1) confirmed case of COVID-19 with 0 (0) patient in ICU (figures in brackets are from 30 April).  Occupancy levels have increased to 90% in respect of non-Covid patients for elective surgery and there are 38 unoccupied general and acute beds.
 
Sadly there has been one further Covid related death across the Stratford District over the last week to 141 from the start of this second wave (28th August 2020) 37 occurring in care homes, 91 in hospital, two in a hospice and 10 at home and one in a communal establishment, out of a total of 1000 all cause deaths in the district for this new second wave period.
 
The cumulative total of deaths across Warwickshire for Wave 2 has now increased to 670 from 668 last week with a total of 4131 all cause deaths.  The cumulative total of Covid-19 deaths in Stratford district is 309 since the start of the pandemic and in Warwickshire 1271.
 
The locally led Lateral Flow Testing facility for people WITHOUT coronavirus symptoms in Stratford has now carried out 29,133 tests with positive results remaining at 87, which represents no increases in positivity over the last four weeks.  The home testing service is still available to everyone with COVID-19 symptoms and can be accessed through the home testing online portal. 
 
Have a good week and stay safe and well.
 
Penny-Anne O’Donnell
 
Cllr Wellesbourne Division WCC
 
SDC Cllr Ward Member for Ettington
Chair Overview and Scrutiny and
Vice Chair Climate Change Panel.