Big step forward for 'sports village' plans
Plans to create a new multi-million pound sports village in Workington have taken a big step forward thanks to a major funding announcement from the Government.
The Allerdale Community Sports Village project was one of the schemes submitted as part of the Towns Fund bid and will see a new shared stadium built for the football and rugby league clubs with a linked set of inclusive community facilities open to all.
The project continues to be led by Workington Reds and Workington Town alongside support from the council with a project board set up last year meeting every two weeks to accelerate progress and build on the work which has already taken place.
New council leader elected
Cllr Mike Johnson (right) has been elected as the new leader of Allerdale Borough Council. His election comes following a vote at a meeting of the full council on Wednesday, March 3, 2021 where an urgent motion to consider the election of a leader of the council was submitted.
Cllr Johnson had previously served as the council's deputy leader and is also the Executive member for economic growth, community development and placemaking.
Cllr Marion Fitzgerald, the Executive member for policy, governance and people resources, has been appointed as the new deputy leader of the council.
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Covid-19 cases continue to fall in Cumbria
As new COVID-19 cases in Cumbria in week ending 26 February fell 34% (556 to 368), data on the progress of the vaccination programme in the county have been published for the first time.
The new data shows that 37% of Cumbria’s adult population has now received their first dose of the vaccine, slightly above the average for England. Over 95% of those aged over 70 have received their first dose.
While new cases dropped significantly overall, infection rates in Allerdale and Copeland remained above the England average with Allerdale recording the greatest number of new cases for the second week in a row (+106 cases).
Hospitalisations continued to drop in week ending 2 March with the number of new patients admitted with COVID-19 Positive status decreasing in both North Cumbria Integrated Care (NCIC) and University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMB) by -52% and -16% respectively.
100,000+ have vaccine in Cumbria
 An update from the North Cumbria Clinical Commissioning Group:
More than a third of north Cumbria’s eligible population have been now had a vaccination for covid.
109,956 vaccinations have been given at hospital hubs and through our GP teams working together in Primary Care Networks.
The latest verified figures from NHS England published this week show:
- 70,326 over 65s have had their first vaccine
- 35,178 under 65s have had their first vaccine
- 2,314 over 65s have had their second vaccine
- 2,138 under 65s have had their second vaccine
This means 92.9% of the over 65 population in north Cumbria have had at least one dose of the vaccine.
The majority of vaccinations have been delivered through our Primary Care Networks – groups of GP Practices working together.
This has involved GPs, practice nurses, pharmacists, paramedics, healthcare assistants and admin teams working together along with volunteers from our communities to deliver the vaccine, safely, locally and quickly.
We are following the guidance outlined by the Joint Committee of Vaccinations and Immunisations (JCVI).
We are working towards the national deadlines of all over 50s being offered their first vaccination by the middle of April and all adults by the end of July.
The vaccine supply is allocated nationally and sometimes our PCNs get more than expected – and sometimes less than they would like. All the vaccine supplied is delivered to patients as quickly as possible.
Council budget agreed
The council has agreed its revenue budget for the next financial year following a meeting held on Wednesday night.
Councillors also agreed the capital budget for the next three years, which will mean investment throughout the borough.
The agreed budget means that the council can continue to offer key services to its residents, support the area’s communities and help businesses recover from the coronavirus pandemic as the lockdown restrictions ease.
Like many other local authorities, councillors agreed a £5 annual increase in council tax for a band D property (with proportionate increases for other bands). This equates to a rise of just 2.86%. In a recent consultation on the budget proposals, 60% of respondents supported such a rise, which would mean an increase of less than 10p a week on a band D bill and take the annual payment to £179.72.
Despite the increase, the borough council’s share of the average council tax bill remains less than 10% of the total, and continues to be the lowest bill of all the district councils in Cumbria.
Council meetings
This week a meeting of the full council was held and in this coming week (w/c 8th March) meetings of the Licensing Regulatory Panel and Licensing Panel will take place. The agendas can be viewed online.
All meetings are held virtually and streamed live on YouTube.
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