Lockdown Guidance – County Councillor Jeff Harris

Dear Resident,

I will be publishing a separate Councillors Report in the next day or so, but thought it prudent to send out the latest ‘Can/can’t‘ do list of activities during this lockdown

The lockdown began on Thursday 5th November and lasts until Wednesday 2nd December. The rules are a little less restrictive than they were in the spring when it was not permitted to see anyone outside your household and more businesses are remaining open.

I’m sorry for the length of this message, but there are quite a few important issues to highlight. This information is current as of 5th November.

I’m grateful to Chris Grayling MP for much of the information.

Please feel free to share this as much as possible, and obviously in an appropriate way, remembering that not everyone has access to the internet.

Once again, thank you for your support of our vulnerable residents and neighbours. Don’t forget to ‘knock next door’ if you re shopping and see if they need anything.

As before, everyone is being asked to stay at home, except for the following purposes:

Where it is reasonably necessary in order…

To buy goods or obtains services from relevant open businesses for your own household, for a vulnerable person, or for someone in the same household as a vulnerable person
To obtain or deposit money to/from a relevant financial services provider
To exercise or visit a public outdoor place for recreation or exercise (alone, in your household or support/childcare bubble, or with one other person)
To attend a place of worship (you are allowed private prayer but church services are not now permitted)
To attend a permitted Remembrance Sunday event, or specified Armistice day event in Westminster Abbey
Activities related to the purchase, sale, letting or rental of a residential property (or associated activities including visiting estate agents, viewing properties, preparing properties to move in)
To meet or visit someone in your support bubble
To collect ordered food and drink ordered from a business
To visit waste disposal or recycling centres

Work and other obligations:

Where necessary for the purposes of work or voluntary or charitable services, where it is not reasonably possible to work or provide these services from home
To access voluntary and charitable services, such as food banks
For the purposes of education or training
To provide care or assistance to a vulnerable person
To provide emergency assistance to any person
To fulfil a legal obligation e.g. attending court, satisfying bail conditions, or participating in legal proceedings
To access critical public services, such as social services, services provided by the DWP, services provided to victims (would also include e.g. registering a birth)

Elite athletes

To participate in an elite sport event or training if you are an elite sports person, a coach, or a parent if the sports person is under 18

For a medical need

To seek medical assistance, including to take a test or to be vaccinated
To donate blood or attend medical trials
To avoid illness, injury or to escape a risk of harm
To attend a person giving birth at their request
To visit a person in hospital/hospice/care home, or to accompany someone to a medical appointment as a family or friend of that person

For support and respite

To attend a support group
For the purposes of respite care for a vulnerable person, a person with a disability, or a short break in respect of a looked after child

Deathbed visits

To visit someone reasonably believed to be dying where that person is a member of the household, close family, or friend

Funerals

To attend a funeral (but there are tight limits on the numbers attending)
A commemorative event celebrating the life of a person who has died (though again, there are limits on numbers)
To visit a burial ground or remembrance garden to pay respect to a member of that person’s household, family or friend

Marriage and civil partnerships

To attend a deathbed wedding

Children

To continue existing arrangements for access to and contact between parents and children where they live apart
To arrange contact between siblings where they don’t live together and one or more sibling is in formal care
To meet prospective adopters if relevant
To access educational facilities, or to accompany a child to those facilities as a parent/carer
To access Ofsted registered childcare or supervised activities for children to enable a parent to work/undertake education or training/seek work
For the purposes of informal childcare provided within a childcare bubble

Animal welfare

To attend veterinary services to seek advice about the health or welfare of a pet or other animal in care of that person, or to seek treatment
To attend to the care or exercise of a pet or other animal cared for by that person

Other reasons

Where reasonably necessary to return home if you were on holiday immediately before the regulations came into force
To visit someone living in criminal justice accommodation if you are a friend or family member

Meeting others safely

You are allowed to meet one other person from another household, but only outside your home. You are also still allowed to have a support bubble with another single person household.

Retail Businesses

This is a list of the retail businesses that are remaining open to customers over the coming month.

Food retailers (food markets, supermarkets, convenience stores, and corner shops)
Off-licenses and licensed shops selling alcohol (including breweries)
Pharmacies (including non-dispensing pharmacies) and chemists
Newsagents
Building merchants and building services
Garden centres
Hardware stores
Petrol stations
Car repair and MOT services
Bicycle shops
Taxi or vehicle hire businesses
Banks, building societies, credit unions, short term loan providers and cash points
Money transfer businesses and currency exchange offices and savings clubs
Post offices
Funeral directors
Laundrettes and dry cleaners
Dental services, opticians, audiology services, chiropody, chiropractors, osteopaths, and other medical services including services relating to mental health
Veterinary surgeons and pet shops
Animal rescue centres and boarding facilities
Agricultural supplies shops
Storage and distribution facilities, including delivery drop-off or collection points, where the facilities are in the premises
Car parks
Public toilets
Outdoor market stalls that sell essential retail (in addition to outdoor stalls that sell food and livestock)

For others, there are some exemptions – so for example cafés, pubs and restaurants are allowed to do takeaway services again. If you run a business affected and have any questions please contact one of the Council numbers below. I must admit that the list of exemptions is too long even for this bulletin.

And please do, as so many of you did in the spring, buy takeaways from our local cafés and restaurants so we can help them through the current difficult period.

Business Support

For those of you with a business that is affected by the new restrictions, please contact Reigate and Banstead Borough Council or Surrey County Council on the numbers below to see what support is available for you.

Surrey County Council Services

Surrey County Council Services that will remain open during the next month.

Library services – we will be running a Click and Collect service from the doorstep of our libraries across the county in addition to a Home Library service. We will also be offering computer access on an appointment only basis for those residents who need it for essential services such as Universal Credit applications. We have an extensive on-line offer that will be publicised to our residents including digital events, e-books, e-newspapers, e-magazines all for free and residents can join on-line and start borrowing straight away.

Our arts service will continue to be delivered both online and through our adult learning centres and in schools.

Civil registration services – will continue to operate as they do now, but no weddings will be allowed unless exceptional circumstances.

Customer Services/ Contact Centre – remaining open -see beelow

Frontline services in Children’s and Adult Social Care we recognise that much of the essential work that the council has to do, particularly to support vulnerable residents, cannot be done from home. For those working on the front line, for example social workers in adult social care, or in children’s services, arrangements will remain the same for the time being. Support staff in frontline services may also be asked to go in, as required, to maintain capacity to enable staff to carry out their roles.

Adult Social Care –the Emergency Duty Team (EDT) will be fully operational during the lockdown period, as will the MASH (multi-agency safeguarding hub). Day Centres are expected to be closed (although they are not run by the council).

Care homes – are for now asked to follow the existing guidance for visiting i.e. no visiting if the home is located within a Tier 2/ high alert area, e.g. in Elmbridge but we are expecting a further update tomorrow.

Children’s Services – will continue seeing children face to face out of preference, but based on risk factors can also carry out these visits virtually if needed. Waiting for further clarity on Youth Services and Family Centres.

Schools, education settings and nurseries– will remain open, including our three Surrey outdoor learning sites for schools

After school clubs – must close if they operate purely for extra-curricular activities; can remain open if they are needed for after school childcare. Waiting for further detail.

Waste – we think that these will remain open but are waiting on further guidance. Re-use recycling & upcycling shops – will close during lockdown period.

Reigate and Banstead Waste Services are also unaffected at present, so pleae continue to put your bins out as normal

Countryside sites and car parks– will remain open

Construction and highways works– will continue

All the following remain fully operational: Surrey Fire & Rescue Service; Coroner’s Court, Trading Standards, Health & Safety, IT & Digital, Planning and all other corporate, democratic and support services.

Useful Telephone Numbers

For any of you in need of help during the coming month:

Surrey County Council’s helpline, which is the best point of contact to get volunteer help if you need, for example, help with shopping, is 0300 200 1008
.
Reigate and Banstead Borough Council – 01737 276000

If you are over retirement age, you can also get help from the local branches of Age Concern

Age Concern Banstead – 01737 352156

Please feel free to contact me or your local County/Borough Councillors, if you have any particular problems and we will try to help.

I hope the above information is not too confusing and again apologise for the length of this message.

Kind regards and best wishes,

Jeff. Harris

County Councillor Tadworth, Walton on the Hill, Burgh Heath and Kingswood.