Monthly Archive 29 September 2020

A group of women, who have set up a group to bring the Nunsthorpe community together, have collected an impressive 320kg of litter in just one hour.

North East Lincolnshire Council and its regeneration partner, ENGIE, are planning to remove the existing gateway chicanes on Waltham Road between the A18 and Bradley Road in Barnoldby le Beck.

A NEW bridge providing a symbol of Great Grimsby’s past and a gateway to its future will be positioned across the River Freshney as the centrepiece of Garth Lane’s transformation.

The development of a flagship headquarters for one of the region’s fastest-growing tech companies is progressing well at North East Lincolnshire Council’s new business park.

New wheelie bins are arriving at thousands more homes as part of North East Lincolnshire Council’s massive recycling overhaul.

CLEETHORPES’ well-known RAFA club is to get a five-figure external make-over that will take its frontage back to its traditional, Victorian beginnings.

People across North East Lincolnshire are being urged to download the NHS COVID-19 app to help control the spread of coronavirus and protect themselves and their loved ones as case numbers rise across the UK.

The app launches today, and after positive trials and rigorous testing is an important new tool to work alongside traditional contact tracing to help reduce the spread of the virus.

It will be available to those aged 16 and over in multiple languages. It forms a central part of the NHS Test and Trace service in England and the NHS Wales Test, Trace, Protect programme – identifying contacts of those who have tested positive for coronavirus.

Today the UK’s major mobile network operators, including Vodafone, Three, EE and O2, Sky and Virgin, have confirmed that all in-app activity will not come out of customers’ data allowance.

The contact tracing element of the app works by using low-energy Bluetooth to log the amount of time you spend near other app users, and the distance between you, so it can alert you if someone you have been close to later tests positive for COVID-19 – even if you don’t know each other.

The app will advise you to self-isolate if you have been in close contact with a confirmed case. It will also enable you to check symptoms, book a free test if needed and get your test results.

The app has been designed with user privacy in mind, so it tracks the virus, not people and uses the latest in data security technology to protect privacy. The system generates a random ID for an individual’s device, which can be exchanged between devices via Bluetooth (not GPS). These unique random IDs regenerate frequently to add an extra layer of security and preserve anonymity.

The app does not hold personal information such as your name, address or date of birth, and only requires the first half of your postcode to ensure local outbreaks can be managed. No personal data is shared with the government or the NHS.

From today certain businesses in England are required by law to display NHS Test and Trace QR codes so customers with the NHS COVID-19 app can use them to check-in. QR codes will help businesses meet their legal requirement to log contact details and allow public health leads to send alerts based on whether people have checked in at venues. So far, more than 160,000 businesses have already downloaded QR codes. QR check-in: enabling users to check-in at a venue and alerting them if they have recently visited somewhere they may have come into contact with someone who later tests positive for COVID-19.

As well as contact tracing, the app has a range of additional, enhanced features that will help to reduce personal and public risk from COVID-19 as part of the wider testing and contact tracing service:

• alert: letting users know the level of coronavirus risk in their postcode district
• QR check-in: enabling users to check-in at a venue and alerting them if they have recently visited somewhere they may have come into contact with someone who later tests positive for COVID-19
• symptoms: allowing users to check if they have coronavirus symptoms and see if they need to order a free test
• test: helping users book a free test through the app and get results to know whether they have COVID-19
• isolate: if a user is told to self-isolate, a timer feature will help count down that period and access will be provided to relevant advice

Cllr Philip Jackson, leader of North East Lincolnshire Council, said: “The launch of the NHS COVID-19 app is an important part of the government’s coronavirus response. The more people who download and use this app, the more it will help us to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This is a welcome step in protecting those around us.”

Article from NELC.

North East Lincolnshire Council is warning local people and businesses to be vigilant if they are approached by people appearing to be council officials.

North East Lincolnshire is to get a Local Testing Site for COVID-19, Council bosses have announced today.

As part of the rollout of a national network of diagnostic testing facilities, the authority has negotiated the establishment of a local site, expected to be available in early October, on the Duchess Street Car Park in Grimsby.

This site has been in use for some of the COVID-19 mobile testing unit since June but this is only available on selected days each month.  Once the local testing site is established, testing should be available every day.

The site was chosen following discussions with Deloitte who have been commissioned by the Government to establish these sites in areas of the country where access to regional testing centres, such as the one at the Humber Bridge, can be difficult for residents who don’t have access to vehicles.

The decision to establish the site has been agreed by the Council and the site is expected to be up and running in October. Further details will be released once they are known, but at this stage, it’s expected to help people who would find it easier to access Grimsby than to access others such as the Humber Bridge or Lincoln.

Council Leader Philip Jackson welcomed the agreement, which followed detailed discussions led by the Council’s public health team.

“Everyone in North East Lincolnshire has played their part in tackling COVID and this news is further evidence of us all working together to ensure local people are safe,’’ he added.

“I’m sure our residents will be pleased to know they’ll have somewhere local to go and be tested if necessary.

“But while people with symptoms absolutely must come forward to get a test to help us stop the spread of the virus, it’s also important that as we manage this period of high demand, if you don’t have symptoms, and have not specifically been advised to take a test, then please don’t come forward for one because they could be taking a test away from someone who really needs it. ‘’

It’s expected the site survey will take place at the end of this month, prior to construction on October 1^st and a pilot exercise on October 2^nd before the station is fully operational.

Article from NELC.

The ‘ambitious’ Tory administration of North East Lincolnshire Council has reviewed and changed many of Labour’s ill-conceived policy judgements, and Labour’s ‘anything goes’ culture during their five years in power saw them run up a £100-million debt.