New Covid restrictions which affect all of us in East Sussex were announced by the Government at the weekend.

In Hastings and Rother

Hastings and Rother have been placed in a new tier (tier 4 - stay at home) because of the very rapid spread of the virus. The new restrictions mean:

• you must stay at home whenever possible
• non-essential shops must close
• gyms, hair and beauty and other close contact services must close
• you can only meet one other person not from your household and only in an open public space
• you must not travel to areas in other tiers (unless it’s absolutely essential for work, medical reasons or education)
• no travel abroad
• no mixing of households at Christmas
• support bubbles are still allowed
• communal worship can continue

Find out about the full restrictions in tier 4

In Eastbourne, Lewes and Wealden

Eastbourne. Lewes and Wealden remain in tier 2 (high alert) but the rules for Christmas have changed.

• You can meet in a bubble of up to 3 households, but only on Christmas day
• You cannot include households from tier 4 in your bubble

Find out about the full restrictions in these areas

You are strongly advised to 'stay local' whenever possible and act as if you carried the infection. You should not leave the country except for urgent work reasons. 

For details of how these changes will affect ESCC services visit: Disruption to ESCC services

The government will continue to review health and infection data and will decide on any new changes to tiers by 30 December at the latest. 

We are working with our partners in the Sussex Resilience Forum (SRF) and with the Govt to minimise the impact on Sussex residents and businesses from the end of the transition period with the European Union after 31 December.

The Govt's assessment is that this is only a low risk for Sussex but the SRF is working on contingency plans to prevent and to manage any difficulties on the county’s roads or at its ports. Some key considerations:

Traffic and freight

At present, neither the Department for Transport nor the SRF expect significant extra lorries to move into Sussex as a result of traffic build-up in Kent or customs delays at other ports. The operators of Newhaven Ferry Port are in regular contact with hauliers to remind them HGVs can only board with a valid ticket, so there would be no advantage for lorry drivers to move to Newhaven from Dover.

Contingency planning is based on a reasonable worst-case scenario in which 70% of lorries arriving at ports are not ‘customs-ready’. At Newhaven, this scenario would mean 37 lorries (of each ferry’s capacity of 52 lorries) returning to Sussex roads. This is not considered likely, but SRF planning reflects the impact this scenario might have on Sussex’s relatively limited road infrastructure.

Medicine

In line with national NHS procedure, NHS organisations in Sussex are holding an extra six weeks’ stock of medicines and medical products to ensure stable supply. There is no need for residents to order more medicine than they need.

Food

The food industry is already experienced in dealing with scenarios that can affect food supply and while there may temporarily be less choice, shops will continue to be stocked. There is no need for shoppers to buy extra supplies.

Fuel

Local authorities have well-rehearsed plans to manage any temporary local interruption in supplies of petrol and diesel fuel which stem from disruption at regional or national level. It is considered unlikely there will be any need to activate these plans as a result of our EU Exit, however Sussex partners will monitor the situation and be ready to respond.

Business readiness

The UK government is urging businesses which trade with the EU to familiarise themselves with the changes they’ll need to make by 31 December.  Government advice for businesses on import, export and customs

The Sussex chamber of commerce and other local business groups are running seminars and advice session for local businesses. SRF partners are helping to publicise these with Sussex businesses. https://www.sussexchamberofcommerce.co.uk/events

https://www.southeastlep.com/business-support/uk-transition/

https://www.c2cbusiness.org.uk/filter/high-growth-business/uk-transition

The NHS in Sussex is looking for volunteers to become Vaccination Champions to help raise awareness of the COVID-19 vaccination and help dispel myths.

Vaccination Champions receive expenses and will be offered a £20 Amazon Voucher on completion of training and tasks as agreed. They will be asked to attend one 2.5 hour session in January.

Applications to become a Vaccination Champion can be made in written form and/or by telephone supported by the CCGs’ Public Involvement team by Monday 4^th January 2021. For more info: https://www.sussexhealthandcare.uk/get-involved/covid-19-vaccination-champions/

The number of new cases in East Sussex has continued to rise and, after months of being well below the England average, the local rates are now well above the national figures.

The latest stats show a rate of 353 new cases per 100,000 population in East Sussex while the rate for England is 262.

The figures reported below show the number of new cases for the latest 7-day period available.  For comparison, the figure in brackets is the number of new cases in the seven day period covered by the previous update.

Source: https://coronavirus-staging.data.gov.uk/details/cases   20 December, 2020

Table: Total number of lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in East Sussex in the seven days leading up to 15 December

You can also see fuller context for East Sussex and commentary from the Director of Public Health in the weekly bulletin published each Friday.

There is a web page on our website that brings together a range of information and advice regarding the coronavirus. 

Visit: Coronavirus - help and support