Christmas attractions will return to Romford Market this year, for all the family to enjoy every day from Saturday 17 to Saturday 24 December 2022.
The historic Romford Market in its 775th year, will be extending its hours in the run-up to Christmas to make it easier to pick up decorations, gifts, bargains and everyday essentials including fruit, veg, fish and meat.
The market will be open every day from Friday 9 to Saturday 24 December, with a variety of Christmas activities to cater for all visitors.
The Romford Market events for 2022 are sponsored by the Romford Business Improvement District (BID).
9 to 18 December - Santa’s Post Box
Get your little ones to send their Christmas letters to Santa and get a personalised reply.
17 to 24 December - Mini fairground funfair
10am to 4pm (closes 3pm Christmas Eve)
17 December - Free mini Christmas concert
12pm to 3pm
Enjoy live performances and party dances with Christmas characters.
20 to 24 December - The Elf Car Experience
10am to 4pm (closes 3pm Christmas Eve)
The free Elf Car experience will be in various locations around Romford town centre, featuring a free fun photo booth and a control centre where children can FaceTime Father Christmas.
10, 17 and 24 December - Free wrapping station
Buy a present or anything from Romford Market and get it wrapped for free!
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With the number of Strep A cases rising, it’s important that parents know what symptoms to look out for and what to do if they suspect that their child may be affected.
Strep A is a bacteria that causes common childhood infections including tonsillitis, pharyngitis, scarlet fever, impetigo and cellulitis. Lots of us carry strep A naturally on our skin, but sometimes it leads to these infections, which can be treated with antibiotics.
The symptoms to look out for include:
- Sore throat
- Headache
- Fever
- A fine, pinkish or red body rash. It may be harder to spot on darker skins, but both will have a sandpapery feel.
To protect yourself from getting the illness you should:
- wash your hands often
- don’t share eating utensils with an infected person
- wash, or dispose of, handkerchiefs and tissues contaminated by an infected person
- be aware that you can catch scarlet fever by inhaling contaminated airborne droplets if someone with the illness coughs or sneezes in the air near you.
If you think you, or your child, have Strep A - see your GP or contact NHS 111 as soon as possible.
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The cold weather is definitely upon us, with temperatures dropping below zero degrees for part of the country.
Earlier this week, the Met Office issued a yellow weather warning, and the NHS warned residents, particularly those who are vulnerable, to take extra steps to keep warm and stay safe during cold weather periods.
The chance of catching flu increases during winter months and cold temperatures. This can be very serious for older people and people who have certain health conditions. Keeping warm over the winter months can help to prevent more serious problems such as heart attacks, strokes, pneumonia and depression.
There are simple actions you can take minimise the risk, including:
- Heating your home to at least 18C (65F)
- Keeping your bedroom window closed on winter nights, but open for short periods during the day to allow ventilation and to prevent mould
- Never cover the vents and do not cook with windows closed
- Wearing several layers of light clothes as they trap warm air better than one bulky layer
- Keeping active when you're indoors, try not to sit still for more than an hour or so.
You may be eligible to get help with heating your home through the Winter Fuel Payment and can find information on making your home warmer on the GOV.UK website.
If you're worried about the cost of keeping your home warm all day long, you can take advantage of the warm spaces we have set up with partners across the borough.
These include libraries, community centres and many shops and business. Take a look at our full warm spaces list for times and locations, and the Cost of Living Support Page for advice on tackling the rising cost of living this winter.
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Gritters
The Council's gritters and snow plough are on standby, ready to tackle the ice and snow should it arrive.
In the event of heavy snowfall or sub-zero conditions, as many primary roads as possible will be gritted, with priority given to bus routes and roads linking motorways and hospitals.
Once priority roads are clear, the team will look at side roads (secondary routes) to help make sure scheduled rubbish collections can still take place and enable emergency services to access as many streets as possible.
We currently have:
- five gritting lorries on stand-by
- 2,000 tonnes of salt in our depot – enough to grit up to over 380 miles of roads and sufficient for almost three weeks of continuous snowfall
- teams on-call 24/7 including weekends.
In icy and snowy conditions, residents are advised to take extra care and only travel if necessary.
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A new online tool is available to make it easier for the public to check if they are eligible for the Warm Home Discount, which provides eligible low-income and vulnerable households with a £150 discount off their energy bills.
The online tool will guide customers by asking questions about electricity supply, the benefits they receive and characteristics of their property. After answering the questions, customers will be told whether their property meets the high energy cost criteria.
All customers will receive a letter between now and mid-January confirming their eligibility and the payment will be made automatically through energy suppliers by March 2023.
The Government is also writing to customers who may be eligible, advising them to use the tool to check eligibility, as well as using the helpline for particularly complex cases.
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Havering Council will be installing over 140 charge points across the borough next year to help support residents with electric vehicles.
There will be 68 charge points in 12 Council-owned car parks and 80 at on- street parking bays.
The specific locations are still being finalised, but it is expected they will be in operation from early summer next year.
Funding for this comes from the Government On-Street Residential Charging Scheme (ORC) grant, following successful lobbying from the Council.
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Construction work is under way on a new health and wellbeing centre in Hornchurch.
A ground-breaking ceremony took place last Friday (2 December) to mark the official start of building work for the St George’s Health and Wellbeing Hub, off Sutton's Lane.
It comes after the Government granted final approval for the scheme, which will bring together a range of health, social care and community services within brand-new, purpose-built premises serving people across Havering and its neighbouring boroughs.
Health and care partners across north east London have been working together for a number of years to design the hub, on the site of the old St George’s Hospital.
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To help struggling families with the rising cost of living, the Government has announced a new deal with a range of Internet Service Providers (IPSs) and Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) to offer low-cost packages for those on low incomes, called Social Tariffs.
Social Tariffs are available for people claiming Universal Credit, Pension Credit and some other benefits, with some providers offering deals from as low as £15 a month.
This could represent a saving of around £180 per year, which is over 50% less than the average cost of broadband.
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The latest round of data from the Census 2021 has been released, following on from the information we published on Friday 25 November on Havering's demographics. The new stats focus on ethnicity, national identity, language and religion.
The latest data shows that Havering has the joint highest population of White British people in London, at 66.5 per cent of the borough - down from 83.3 per cent in 2011.
Interestingly, there has been a 6.8 per cent drop in the number of people in Havering that identify to a religion.
This is the second in a series of nine ‘Topic Summaries’ that will be released between autumn 2022 and spring 2023. You can see more highlights from the demographic data in this infographic below.
 For the first time, the 2021 Census saw a question added for veterans who have either previously served in the regular forces, reserve forces, or both. 5,071 Havering residents reported that they had previously served in the UK armed forces, which is 2.4% of Havering residents aged 16 years and over.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) and the Office for Veterans' Affairs have recently launched a Veterans' Survey. The online survey gives ex-UK Armed Forces personnel and their families the opportunity to provide direct feedback to the government on their experiences, access to and use of services for veterans. The survey can be completed online.
Planning Inspectorate has approved National Highways’ application for a Development Consent Order (DCO) to progress to detailed examination of the Lower Thames Crossing project.
This proposes a new Thames tunnel to the East of the existing Queen Elizabeth II Bridge which would be connected via a new motorway standard link road through Thurrock and across land in the East of Havering, joining the M25 at a modified A127 junction.
Leader of the Council, Ray Morgon, said: “The Council has been in regular contact with National Highways to ensure that likely impacts on the borough have been highlighted and considered, and to seek appropriate mitigations if the project proceeds. In particular, we have sought to ensure that residents’ concerns have been acknowledged.
“It is the case that the borough will be directly impacted by the works which will mean increased traffic, the building of construction compounds, and road closures potentially splitting communities.
"The expected closure of Ockendon Road during construction is also likely to impact local businesses, and the nearby funeral facilities at Upminster Cemetery. The new road will run across existing farmland and a small section of the Thames Chase Forest.
“It is positive that National Highways are working on plans for planting trees and greening before work begins to mitigate environmental and air quality impacts...
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 The latest data shows that, as of Wednesday 30 November, there were just two people in hospital with COVID-19 in Havering. This is down from 45 people at the end of October.
It's also important to note that just 52 per cent of Havering residents aged over 55 years have had their Autumn booster vaccine. Though this is slightly higher that the rest of London, it's still lower than the UK average.
The booster is a vital part of keeping COVID-19 numbers low this winter. If you are eligible for the jab but haven't had it yet, please visit our drop-in centre in Elm Park tomorrow (Saturday 10 December).
Read our newly published monthly COVID-19 report for more details on infection rates, hospital admissions and deaths in Havering.
Has your child missed any of their school-age vaccinations?
Vaccination UK are offering catch up clinics for any child who has missed any of their vaccinations.
These sessions will take place on Tuesday 13 December, 3:30pm - 5:30pm at MyPlace, 343 Dagnam Park Drive RM3 9EN and Tuesday 20 December, 10am - 2pm at Fairkytes Art Centre, Billet Lane RM11 1AX
The full list of possible missed vaccinations include:
- Flu Vaccinations - Reception to Year 6
- HPV - Year 8 to Year 13
- DTP & Meningitis ACWY - Year 9 to Year 13
- MMR - Reception to Year 13
- Polio Booster - 6 to 9 Years Old
If you would like to attend, please email Vaccination UK at appointments@v-uk.co.uk or call 0203 343 2400
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Volunteers across Havering have been adding their stories to the London's Lifelines campaign, highlighting incredible work across the borough to celebrate International Volunteer Day 2022 last Monday (5 December).
Havering Volunteer Centre's Chief Executive, Shelley Hart, said she is "immensely proud of the voluntary sector in Havering, who go above and beyond to help their fellow citizens".
Stories featured in the London's Lifelines campaign include volunteers helping to provide patients in the oncology ward at Queen's Hospital with warm drinks and a friendly face, as well as others volunteering at vaccination sites to help ensure elderly and vulnerable residents get their COVID-19 boosters.
Shelley described Havering's mass of stories as a "leading light in London".
You can read stories from volunteers across the capital on the London's Lifelines Website, and add your story and show how great our Havering volunteers are.
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 If you haven't done so already, please take some time this weekend to have your say on our budget proposals for 2023.
Please visit the consultation page below, take a look at the proposals, and help us to understand how they will impact you.
 To submit events for possible inclusion in this section of the newsletter, please use the form on our website or send an email
Havering Arts Council is hosting a Christmas at Stubbers, at the Stubbers Adventure Centre on Saturday 17 December from 11am to 4pm. The family event will feature craft stalls where children can make cards, decorate snowmen and write wishes on magic stars.
There will also be hand-made goods stalls, carol singing, a special fun walk around the grounds, a silent disco and other fun surprises. Tickets are available from the Stubbers website.
New City College Ardleigh Green are hosting a Christmas Market on Tuesday 13 December, 4pm to 7pm. The market will feature clothing boutiques, sweet treats and decorations, as well as free fun activities for the whole family.
The market is indoors so will be open whatever the weather, with free entry and parking.
Havering Singers are hosting their Christmas Concert 2022 at Holy Cross Church, Hornchurch, on Saturday 17 December, 7:30pm to 9:30pm. Come along and listen to the choir sing popular carols, and maybe join in on a few yourself. Book tickets online, or by calling 07342 883211.
Fairkytes Arts Centre is hosting a Christmas Arts & Crafts Market on Friday 16 December. Join local crafters and traders from 5pm for a great evening of Christmas shopping.
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Parts of Helmsdale Close will be closed for a street party on Wednesday 21 December between 3pm and 8pm. The road will be closed from numbers 9 to 31, with access to Isbell Gardens available.
Remember, Market Place Car Park in Romford is currently closed from today (Friday 9 December) until 9pm on Christmas Eve, for the Christmas in Romford Market events.
As part of the Christmas events, Market Link is closed from its junction with Ducking Stool Court. There is no parking, waiting or loading in Market Link, Ducking Stool Court and parts of The Mews.
Public transport
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Unions have announced more strike action on rail services next week, as the dispute over pay and working conditions continues.
Rail workers will likely be on strike on Tuesday 13, Wednesday 14, Friday 16 and Saturday 17 December next week. If it goes ahead, the strike will cause major disruption to train timetables on Greater Anglia services and will likely have a knock-on effect on other services.
Avoid travelling on strike days where possible. It's likely that most routes won't have trains or bus replacements for them.
The day after a strike day is also likely to see disruptions to morning services, with the first trains of the day likely to be busy so try to catch a later train if you can. Please check train times at least a day before you travel.
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