Pboro City Council COVID-19 update

Cambridgeshire County Council and Peterborough City Council communications team will be providing a daily media update with a round-up of any changes to council services arising from the Coronavirus. Please note – all information is correct at the time of publishing.

UPDATE: Monday, 20 April 2020

Highways teams are key workers – Crews across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough continue to carry out safety critical work and essential highways maintenance, any on-going work is being carried out in accordance with government health and safety measures, with workforces practising social distancing.

Both councils are assessing the situation and given the current low volumes of traffic, will review and work with our contractors to see if any projects can start again whilst adhering to the government guidelines.

Highways teams are aware of concerns from members of the public around continuing work at this time and are keen to stress that any work will only be carried out where it is safe to do so.

Councillor Mathew Shuter, Chairman of the Highways and Infrastructure Committee at Cambridgeshire County Council, said: “Our teams are trying to ensure our roads are maintained whilst working under extremely difficult conditions, following safety guidelines and practising social distancing wherever possible. They are doing a sterling job by ensuring that our roads remain accessible.”

Councillor Peter Hiller, Peterborough City Council’s cabinet member for strategic planning, said: “It is vital that our roads, verges and public rights of way are safe for use and that our depots and supply chains remain open where possible, both during lockdown and as we emerge from this difficult period.”

Perkins Great Eastern Run cancelled for 2020 – Peterborough City Council has made the difficult decision to cancel one of the highlights of the city’s events calendar – the Perkins Great Eastern Run – because of the ongoing disruption caused by the Coronavirus outbreak.

The launch of this year’s race was due to take place in March, around the same time the country was being asked by the Government to socially isolate.

Since then the city council has been in discussion with Vivacity, which is taking over the management of the race, and the main sponsor, Perkins Engines, about whether a race would be viable this year.

With the continued uncertainty about when the social distancing measures will be lifted, the city council has decided to cancel this year’s race, usually held in October.

Councillor Steve Allen, cabinet member for housing, culture and recreation for Peterborough City Council, said: “This has been a really tough decision to make as we know it will be disappointing for lots of people and also the many charities that benefit from the event.

“That said, it is the right decision, given the fact we do not know what the next six months will bring and how long the country will be asked to socially distance to limit the spread of the Coronavirus.

“In addition, an event such as the Perkins Great Eastern Run takes many months of planning which would be well underway by now. Many of the suppliers we use are also temporarily closed.

“We hope that all of our amazing runners, running clubs, businesses and residents will understand this decision and get behind the 2021 event to help the event bounce back and make it one of the biggest and best we have seen for many years.”

Last month the council announced that it would be passing control of the management of the race across to the city’s cultural and leisure trust, Vivacity.

The council wants to be able to grow the race and attract additional sponsorship and it believes that Vivacity is best placed to do this with its links with the culture and leisure sector and knowledge.

The council will continue to support the event in a number of ways including managing the necessary road closures and leading on the public safety aspects. Perkins Engines will continue as the main sponsor in 2021.

Schools and nurseries upload fun videos to keep the kids entertained at home (see pic) – As schools and nurseries are now open only to children of key workers and vulnerable children, many parents have been searching for new ways to keep their little ones entertained, often turning to sport and activity videos to follow along with in their homes.

But Joe Wicks isn’t the only one providing fun for the kids in their living rooms, as Cambridgeshire schools and nurseries have been uploading videos for the whole family to join in with.

Staff at Rackham Primary School in Witchford put together a video on YouTube with a code for children to crack, while Buttons and Bows Pre-school in Sawtry is adding videos of staff reading books, poems and performing song and dance to their Facebook page every day.

Manager at Buttons and Bows, Julie Howells, said she wanted to find a way to make sure children continue to build upon positive relationships with staff.

Julie said: “In these uncertain times, we’re not seeing most of our young children at Buttons and Bows. We are currently open on reduced hours to support our key worker parents by syncing with their work rotas and feel proud to be helping them.

“But obviously this is a limited amount of families we have contact with and I was looking for proactive ways to interact with all of our children when I had an idea.

“I decided to start posting a video on our Facebook page every day of a member of staff reading a story or performing an action song and dance.

“Families are loving it – it brings fun to households, allows us to keep in touch and gives the children a chance to see a familiar face and remember that we are there for them.

“Now lots of people are accessing our videos – not just people at Buttons and Bows.”

Buttons and Bows recently received an Ofsted rating of outstanding, after the inspection showed that children felt safe and secure at the nursey and established ‘extremely strong bonds with staff and show genuine affection for them.’

The Ofsted report also said leaders are highly qualified, knowledgeable and passionate in their roles, while all children have equal opportunities to achieve their full potential.

Councillor Simon Bywater, at Cambridgeshire County Council and local member for Sawtry and Stilton, said: “This is another brilliant example of how our local community is coming together to support each other during this challenging time.

“Julie and her colleagues at Buttons and Bows have gone above and beyond to make sure the children at the pre-school feel happy and continue having fun every day. They’re doing a brilliant job and I’m sure they’ve made a huge difference to these children’s lives during isolation.”

Buttons and Bows Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ButtonsandBowsSawtry/

Rackham YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9LJKe5Kh7o&feature=youtu.be

You can keep up-to-date with any changes to our services on our websites:

• Peterborough – https://www.peterborough.gov.uk/healthcare/public-health/coronavirus/disruption-to-council-services
• Cambridgeshire – https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/residents/coronavirus/disruption-to-council-services

Our advice and latest information on Coronavirus can be found on both websites – www.peterborough.gov.uk/coronavirus and www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/coronavirus

Coronavirus: what you need to do

• Stay at home
• Only go outside for food, health reasons or work (where this absolutely cannot be done from home)
• Stay 2 metres (6ft) away from other people
• Wash your hands as soon as you get home

Anyone can spread the virus!

Full guidance on staying at home and away from others can be found here.