In this newsletter:
- National lockdown
- Leaving home
- Support and childcare bubbles
- Travel
- Protecting those more at risk from coronavirus
- Visiting the Council Offices
- Act like you've got it
- Scam alert
- Support available
National Lockdown
 On Monday 4th January 2021 the Government announced that the country will now enter a national lockdown.
As Chief Medical Officers and NHS England Medical Director recommended that the UK alert level should move from level 4 to level 5.
Many parts of our national health systems are already under immense pressure, seeing very high rates of community transmission, with substantial numbers of COVID patients in hospital and intensive care.
We must now play our part again and stay at home, to protect the NHS and save lives.
Leaving Home
 You must not leave, or be outside of your home except where necessary. You may leave your home to:
- shop for basic necessities, for you or a vulnerable person
- go to work, or provide voluntary or charitable services, if you cannot reasonably do so from home
- exercise with your household (or support bubble) or one other person, this should be limited to once per day, and you should not travel outside your local area
- meet your support bubble or childcare bubble where necessary, but only if you are legally permitted to form one
- seek medical assistance or avoid injury, illness or risk of harm (including domestic abuse)
- attend education or childcare - for those eligible
Colleges, primary and secondary schools will remain open only for vulnerable children and the children of critical workers. All other children will learn remotely until February half term. Early Years settings remain open.
Higher Education provision will remain online until mid February for all except future critical worker courses.
If you do leave home for a permitted reason, you should always stay local in the village, town, or part of the city where you live. You may leave your local area for a legally permitted reason, such as for work.
Support and Childcare Bubbles
You have to meet certain eligibility rules to form a support or childcare bubble. This means not everyone will be able to form a bubble.
A support bubble is a support network which links two households. You can form a support bubble with another household of any size only if you meet the eligibility rules.
It is against the law to form a support bubble if you do not follow these rules.
You are permitted to leave your home to visit your support bubble (and to stay overnight with them). However, if you form a support bubble, it is best if this is with a household who live locally. This will help prevent the virus spreading from an area where more people are infected.
If you live in a household with anyone aged under 14, you can form a childcare bubble. This allows friends or family from one other household to provide informal childcare.
You must not meet socially with your childcare bubble, and must avoid seeing members of your childcare and support bubbles at the same time.
Travel
You must not leave your home unless you have a reasonable excuse (for example, for work or education purposes). If you need to travel you should stay local – meaning avoiding travelling outside of your village, town or the part of a city where you live – and look to reduce the number of journeys you make overall.
You can only travel internationally – or within the UK – where you first have a legally permitted reason to leave home. In addition, you should consider the public health advice in the country you are visiting.
Protecting People More at Risk From Coronavirus
If you are clinically vulnerable, you could be at higher risk of severe illness from coronavirus. There is additional advice for people who are clinically extremely vulnerable to coronavirus.Those who are clinically extremely vulnerable should not attend work, school, college or university, and limit the time you spend outside the home. You should only go out for medical appointments, exercise or if it is essential.
Visiting the Council Offices
Due to the announcement, we have closed the Council offices as part of measures to protect residents and employees from COVID-19.
You can still access many of our services in the below ways:
Act Like You've Got It
 Approximately 1 in 3 people who have coronavirus have no symptoms and could be spreading it without realising it.
Remember - Hands. Face. Space.
• Hands – wash your hands regularly and for at least 20 seconds
• Face – wear a face covering in indoor settings where social distancing may be difficult, and where you will come into contact with people you do not normally meet
• Space – stay 2 metres apart from people you do not live with where possible, or 1 metre with extra precautions in place (such as wearing face coverings)
Scam Alert
 As more of us will now be at home, it's important to protect yourself from scammers.
Here's a few tips that may indicate it might be a scam:
- it seems too good to be true
- someone you don’t know contacts you unexpectedly
- you suspect you’re not dealing with a real company – for example, if there’s no postal address
- you’ve been asked to transfer money quickly
- you've been asked to pay in an unusual way
- you’ve been asked to give away personal information like passwords or PINs
- you haven't had written confirmation of what's been agreed
More coronavirus related scams are circulating, Age UK has a list of all the latest known scams to help you stay protected.
If we as the Council ever make a visit to your doorstep, our staff are always wearing identification, whether that be clothing or an ID card, and if you are still unsure you can call our team to confirm on 0115 917 7777.
Support Available
Support to get essential supplies
If you are vulnerable and need help to get food, medicine or community support, please get in touch with the Nottinghamshire Community Support Hub www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/coronaviruscommunityhub or call 0300 500 80 80
Financial support
In some circumstances, if you are required by law to self-isolate, you may be supported by a payment of £500, payable from Broxtowe Borough Council. Find out more about this scheme and other financial support at www.broxtowe.gov.uk/testandtracepayment or call 0115 917 7777
Mental health
The impact of the pandemic on you and your loved ones and not being able to enjoy all of the activities you would normally be involved in can all have an impact on your health. It is important to remember to look after yourself. Useful resources to support you, your family and friends can be found at www.broxtowe.gov.uk/wellbeing or call the Nottinghamshire Mental Health Helpline between 9.00am and 1.00pm, seven days a week on 0300 555 0730.
Accessing NHS services
If you have symptoms or a health concern you are worried about, please contact your GP practice. GP practices are still open and here for you. When you call your practice, you may be offered a consultation online or over the phone. If they feel they need to see you in person, they will invite you in for a face to face appointment. Read more for guidance at https://nottsccg.nhs.uk/covid-19/gp-appointment-guidance/
Staying up to date
The easiest way to stay up to date is by checking our dedicated Coronavirus webpages.
They contain useful information on:
We also share daily updates on our social media accounts and will be sending you this email bulletin every Friday.
Share this
Please share the information in this email bulletin with friends, family, neighbours and colleagues to help us pass on these important messages, particularly if they're not online.
Please also encourage anyone who isn't already subscribed to this Email Me Service to sign up at www.broxtowe.gov.uk/emailme so they can receive these updates.
 Find the latest guidance from the Government website.
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