More than 70,000 people in Portsmouth have had at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.
The programme has now expanded so that anyone 50 or older is able to book an appointment. Those in the eligible groups, which includes some carers and people with learning disabilities, are advised to book now. Appointments for first doses are available for the rest of March but are filling up fast. You can book by visiting nhs.uk/covid-vaccination or calling 119 if you can’t get online. You don’t need to have received a letter from the NHS. The vaccines are free on the NHS and are safe and effective.
Anyone not in the current eligible groups should wait to be contacted. The NHS will let you know when it's your turn.
If you have an appointment booked for your second dose please attend as this is needed to give you maximum protection.
Once you've had your jab it's still important to continue following the advice about social distancing, face coverings and hand washing.
You might receive a text message inviting you to book an appointment. You can trust your text message is genuine if it comes from ‘NHSvaccine’, includes a link to the NHS.uk website and gives you the option of phoning 119. Always remember that the NHS will never:
- ask you for your bank account, card details, PIN or banking password
- arrive unannounced at your home to administer the vaccine
- ask you to prove your identity by sending copies of personal documents such as your passport, driving licence, bills or payslips
If you look after someone who is older or clinically vulnerable, who couldn’t cope without your help, you could be eligible for the Covid-19 vaccine.
If you receive carers allowance or you're already registered with your GP as an unpaid carer then you will receive an invite to book a vaccination appointment. You don't need to do anything.
If you don't receive this allowance or your GP doesn’t know that you have this role, then you can find out if you are eligible and book a vaccine on the national vaccine booking website.
If you need help with this, or anything else to do with your caring role, please do get in touch with our carers centre: carerscentre@portsmouthcc.gov.uk or 023 9285 1864.
You can join in events to mark the anniversary of the first national lockdown on Tuesday.
We'll be supporting Marie Curie's National Day of Reflection and a minute of silence at 12 noon.
You can also take a moment to reflect, remember those we've lost, and show support for those who've been bereaved by shining a light, a candle, a torch or even your phone from your doorstep or window at 8pm on Tuesday.
To support those who've lost a loved one, HIVE Portsmouth has created a bereavement directory. Positive Minds Portsmouth can also offer help to anyone in need of mental health support. You can find more mental health support and advice for adults and young people on our website.
Regular testing is available for households and childcare support bubbles with nursery, primary and secondary school children.
Get tested twice weekly at work (if available), a test site or at home.
See the step-by-step guide or watch this video on how to use your rapid lateral flow home test kit. If anyone tests positive to a home test or gets coronavirus symptoms, they should tell the school, college or nursery and:
You can also help to protect staff and other families at the school site by keeping 2m apart and wearing a face covering if asked to do so.
Keep going, Portsmouth!
Grants are now available to help upgrade the city's most polluting vehicles, before the launch of the clean air zone.
During government guidance to stay at home, we've seen a reduction in vehicles on Portsmouth roads, resulting in a temporary reduction in nitrogen dioxide (NO2). But when restrictions have been eased, the amount of traffic has increased and so have NO2 levels.
To help improve our air quality, some businesses can now apply for a clean air fund grant to help upgrade or replace 'non-compliant' vehicles before the clean air zone (CAZ) launches in November.
Non-compliant vehicles are HGVs, buses, coaches, taxis and private hire vehicles that:
- do not meet Euro 6 emissions standards (so are Euro 5 or older) if they are diesel
- do not meet Euro 4 emissions standards (so are Euro 3 or older) if they are petrol
HGVs, buses and coaches will need to pay £50 a day and taxis and private hire vehicles will need to pay £10 a day to drive in the zone. If you’re not sure what Euro standard your vehicle is, please check your logbook.
Once you've replaced or retrofitted your vehicle to Euro 6 diesel or Euro 4 petrol standard, you'll avoid paying the CAZ charge.
From tonight until census day on Sunday, the Spinnaker Tower and the Guildhall will light up in purple to mark the census launch.
You should have received a letter with an online code explaining how to complete your census form. If you haven’t had one, please get in touch with the census contact centre on 0800 141 2021. You can complete the survey as soon as you have your code, as long as you know who will be in your house on Sunday.
If you need help to fill the census in online, you can get that in a Covid-safe environment, by booking an appointment at the Learning Place on 023 9262 1860 or with Headway on 023 9266 4972.
We're sending this email to everyone who is subscribed to My Portsmouth Updates. We don't do this very often, but we want to get these messages out to as many people as possible. If you know people who will find this information valuable, please send it on to them and encourage them to sign up for updates themselves.
You can update your preferences at any time.
|
