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This Newsletter has been produced by the Petersfield COVID-19 Network. It is intended to help and inform Petersfield residents, especially those who are unable to leave their homes because of Government restrictions.
If you have information which would be of benefit to other residents in Petersfield please contact Romsey Mill with details and we will consider using it in future newsletters.
If you know someone who would like to receive the paper version of this newsletter, please ask them to contact Romsey Mill via phone or via post: Romsey Mill Centre, Hemingford Road, Cambridge CB1 3BZ (you do not need a stamp if you add “FREEPOST CB1067”) or call 07933 671101.
Romsey Mill can also offer assistance by putting you in contact with volunteers, who can help collecting shopping and medication. In addition, Cambridge City Council has set up the Cambridge Hub. The Hub can be contacted on 01223 457000 and supports all residents by responding to requests for help.
Easing the Lockdown – Support Bubbles
We reported earlier that after 13th June if you are a single adult household, you can form a support bubble with one other household. This means you can see other members of your support bubble indoors and outside. You will also be able to be less than 2 metres apart and stay overnight as if you were members of the same household. Individuals who form a bubble with one household may not form a bubble with anyone else.
Everyone may spend time outdoors with groups of up to six people from outside your household or support bubble. Always practise social distancing with people from outside of your household or support bubble, keeping 2 metres apart.
If you or someone in your household or your support bubble (if applicable) is showing coronavirus symptoms, everyone in your support bubble should stay home. If you or a member of your support bubble is contacted as part of the test and trace programme, the individual contacted must stay at home. If the individual becomes symptomatic, everyone in the support bubble must then isolate.
Social Distancing
From 4 July the 2m (6ft) social distancing guidance will change in England.
Where it is not possible to stay 2m apart, people should keep a distance of “one metre plus” – this means staying one metre apart, while observing precautions to reduce the risk of transmission.
Businesses are being asked to help by:
- avoiding face-to-face seating by changing layouts
- reducing the number of people in enclosed spaces
- improving ventilation
- using protective screens and face coverings
- closing non-essential social spaces
- providing hand sanitiser
- changing shift patterns so that staff work in set teams
How to check an NHS Test and Trace contact tracer is genuine
The NHS Test and Trace Service will email, telephone and text people who have been in close contact with confirmed Coronavirus cases.
The team will call from 0300 013 5000 or send a text from “NHS”.
Contract tracers will never:
- Ask you to make any form of payment or purchase a product
- Ask any details about your bank account or social media
- Ask you for any passwords or PINs to download software
Infection Rates in Cambridge
Research at King’s College, London indicates that about 375 people in Cambridge are showing Coronavirus symptoms. This is 0.3% or 3 in a 1000 people. (Estimated rates in Cambridge have varied between 0.2% and 0.5% over the past 2 weeks). If you would like to help with this research, download the app at https://covid.joinzoe.com/
Parking Restrictions Enforcement
Since the city centre is effectively being reopened from Monday 15 June, parking enforcement is also being reinstated, including all resident parking schemes.
However, to help kick-start the economy, the County Council will not at this stage be enforcing its Pay and Display bays in the city.
Staying Safe Outside Your Home
- Keep your distance from people outside your household
It is important to be aware that the risk of infection increases the closer you are to another person with the virus, and the amount of time you spend in close contact with them. Therefore, you are unlikely to be infected if you walk past another person in the street.
- Avoid being face-to-face with people if they are outside your household or support bubble
You are at higher risk of being directly exposed to infection, when you are within two metres of someone and have face-to-face contact with them.
- Keep your hands and face as clean as possible
Wash your hands often using soap and water, and dry them thoroughly.Where available, use sanitiser outside your home, especially as you enter a building and after you have had contact with surfaces. Avoid touching your face.
- Keep indoor places well ventilated
Evidence suggests that the virus is less likely to be passed on outdoors and in well-ventilated buildings. In good weather, try to leave windows and doors open in areas where people from different households come into contact, or move activity outdoors if you can.
- Avoid crowded spaces
Reduce the number of people you come into close contact with. Avoid peak travel times on public transport, where possible and avoid densely crowded areas. Small groups in small spaces pose a risk as well as large, close crowds.
- Work from home if you can
If you can do your job from home you should continue to do so.
- If you have to travel (for example, to work or school), think about how and when you travel
To reduce demand on the public transport network, you should walk or cycle wherever possible. If you have to use public transport, you should try to avoid peak times.
- Face coverings
You must wear a face covering at all times on public transport or when attending a hospital as a visitor or outpatient. Hospitals will be able to provide a face covering in emergencies. If you can, you should also wear a face covering in other enclosed public spaces where social distancing isn’t possible and where you will come into contact with people you do not normally meet.
- Avoid shouting or singing close to people outside your household or support bubble
There is some evidence to suggest that shouting and singing increase the risk of infection
- Reduce the number of people you spend time with in a work setting
You can lower the risks of transmission in the workplace by reducing the number of people you come into contact with regularly, where you can.
- Wash your clothes regularly
There is some evidence that the virus can stay on fabrics for a few days, although usually it is shorter. Therefore, if you are working with people outside your household, wash your clothes regularly.
- When at work or in business or public premises, follow the advice on site
Evidence suggests that the virus can exist for up to 72 hours on surfaces. Therefore, frequent cleaning is particularly important for communal surfaces like:
- door handles
- lift buttons
- communal areas like bathrooms
- kitchens
- tea points
- Using Public Toilets
If travelling far from home, ensure that you know where there are public toilets open. And check that these are being properly maintained and cleaned frequently.