Current UK Risk Level: HIGH

The risk to the UK remains high (as of 13/03/2020).

As of week commencing 11/05/2020, we’re moving into Phase two (Smarter controls) of the Government’s recovery strategy. The country is also moving from Level 4 to Level 3 by the new COVID Alert System and taking the first step in relaxing lockdown measures.

 

Please note the Government’s messaging has changed from ‘stay at home, protect the NHS, save lives’ to ‘stay alert, control the virus, save lives’

 

 

Current UK Situation

• As of 9am on 17 May, 1,818,712 people have been tested, of which 243,695 tested positive. As of 5pm on 16 May, of those tested positive for coronavirus in the UK, 34,636 have died. You can view the latest UK dashboard and cases by local authority here. Confirmed cases in Suffolk are broken down by Districts & Boroughs as follows:

 

Ipswich	322	234.1 per 100,000 resident
East Suffolk	543	218.7per 100,000 resident
Mid Suffolk	161	157.1per 100,000 resident
Babergh	134	146.6 per 100,000 resident
West Suffolk	195	109.0 per 100,000 resident
Suffolk	1,355	178.6 per 100,000 resident

• Government’s Daily Press Conference: 17 May – transcript here.
  • Recap of previous week’s key announcements and update on the Vaccine Taskforce.
  • The first clinical trial of the Oxford vaccine is progressing well, with all Phase 1 participants having received their vaccine dose on schedule earlier this week. Imperial College are also making good progress, and will be looking to move into clinical trials by mid-June.
  • Press conference slides with the latest data from COBR coronavirus fact file (transport use, new cases, hospital admissions, deaths) and datasets available here.
  • View past press conferences on YouTube
• Education Secretary’s statement on coronavirus (COVID-19): 16 May – transcript here.
  • If the rates of infection are decreasing, it will give us a green light to get children back into childcare and more of them back into school from 1 June. Those in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 will be allowed back into school in smaller class sizes. We are also planning to get some secondary school students back – those in years 10 and 12 – to make sure they have the opportunity to come back to school on a limited basis and have some face to face time with teachers.
  • We are prioritising these children because they stand to lose more by staying away from school. The first years of school are pivotal for children to develop social and behavioural skills and to learn the basics that are going to have a huge bearing on how well they do in their life. Students in Years 10 and 12 need support in the run up to vital exams next year
  • This phased return is in line with what other European countries are doing to get their own schools, colleges and nurseries back.
• Answers to the most common topics asked about by the public for the coronavirus press conference – Answers on Social distancing, and seeing your family and friends, When schools are reopening, Rules for reopening businesses, and weddings.

• Funding and manufacturing boost for UK vaccine programme – UK’s top researchers rapidly working to find a coronavirus vaccine will benefit from £84 million of new government funding. This new money will help mass produce the Oxford vaccine, so that if current clinical trials are successful, we have dosages to start vaccinating the UK population straight away.
• Vaccines Manufacturing and Innovation Centre – Up to £93 million government investment to open the UK’s first dedicated Vaccine Manufacturing and Innovation Centre 12 months early. The new Centre is a key component of the government’s coronavirus programme in boosting the UK’s capacity to develop and mass produce vaccines.
• Government begins large scale study of coronavirus immunity – Up to 20,000 people of all ages and walks of life to take part for at least 6 months.
• COVID-19 detection dogs trial launches – Trials for specially-trained ‘COVID dogs’ that may be able to detect coronavirus (COVID-19) in humans, even before symptoms appear, are set to begin as part of new research.
• New taskforce developing plan to reopen places of worship – Faith leaders and government agree to develop plan to enable phased and safe reopening of places of worship.
• Care home support package backed by £600 million to help reduce coronavirus infections – A new £600 million Infection Control Fund has been introduced to tackle the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in care homes. This forms part of wider support for care home residents and staff, including by limiting staff movement, protecting wages and giving access to NHS personal protective equipment (PPE) training. Each care home in England to be given a named clinical lead to provide direct care for residents. A wellbeing package will be also launched on CARE Workforce app to support the workforce with Hospice UK and Samaritans.
• Latest R number range for the UK 0.5-1.0 (15 May) – The Government Office for Science has published the reproduction number (R), which is the average number of secondary infections produced by 1 infected person. SAGE is confident that overall the R is not above 1. This means that the number of infections is not increasing, and is very likely to be decreasing. R number will be updated every week on the GO-Science website.
• The Department for Education’s response (15 May) to issues raised regarding the science on coronavirus (COVID-19) – The response draws on information from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) and its sub-group the Children’s Task and Finish Working Group, as well as the broader advice from engagement with Public Health England. It emphasises confidence in current evidence that the severity of COVID-19 and susceptibility to COVID-19 in children is lower than in adults.  
• NHS England: Operating framework for urgent and planned services in hospital settings during COVID-19 – this guidance is focussed on hospital settings, including acute, community and mental health, but many of the principles will be relevant to other healthcare settings and connecting services, including ambulance, primary and community care.
• UK Centre for Disease Control and Prevention: Workplace reopening decision tree – Tool to assist employers in making (re)opening decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially to protect vulnerable workers.
• UK Centre for Disease Control and Prevention: School reopening decision tree – Tool to assist administrators in making (re)opening decisions regarding K-12 schools during the COVID-19 pandemic
• BBC: Crowd-control measures will be in place at major stations from 18 May as the frequency of services is increased to deal with a growing number of people returning to workplaces. Security guards will be on duty and limits on platform and carriage capacity implemented.
• BBC: The UK recorded 170 deaths on Sunday 18 May, the lowest since 24 March, the day after lockdown was introduced. Nevertheless, the overall death toll in the UK remains the highest in Europe.
• BBC: Debate over school reopening continues – Teaching unions, backed by the British Medical Association, have raised concerns about safety whilst Michael Gove has insisted England’s schools are safe to reopen, but acknowledged that “you can never eliminate risk” and added that key was to make schools safe with smaller classes and staggered arrivals.
• BBC: A study suggests children in wealthier households are studying significantly more at home than their poorer counterparts, adding to worries about a growing divide.
• BBC: Closer look at the care home decisions that were made as the UK government has been strongly criticised for its handling of coronavirus in care homes.
• BBC: Global picture
  • Like the UK, Italy and Spain also recorded their lowest daily death tolls in weeks on Sunday and both are significantly easing their lockdown restrictions. Most businesses in Italy, including bars and hairdressers, will be free to reopen, and outside of Madrid and Barcelona, Spain will allow groups of up to 10 people to meet. Strict hygiene controls remain in place.
  • Brazil now has the fourth highest number of infections globally. The mayor of Sao Paulo has warned the health system is close to collapse, but President Jair Bolsonaro continues to argue against the lockdown implemented.
  • Japan has entered its first recession since 2015 as a result of the pandemic.
  • India has extended its nationwide lockdown until 31 May.

Suffolk

 

• Stick with it Suffolk: Suffolk residents are being asked to continue their great efforts, which are successfully reducing the spread of COVID-19. Stick With It Suffolk is a campaign launching on Monday 18 May 2020 by the Suffolk Resilience forum, highlighting what we must all continue doing, to keep each other safe and to defeat the virus. Recent data* shows that around 1 in 600 people in Suffolk have tested positive for COVID-19, which compares favourably to Norfolk, Essex and the national average. However, we are not out of the woods yet. The number is continuing to rise, although more slowly, which is why it is crucial that people keep following the instructions. Click here for more information.

 

• Keep Moving Suffolk: Keep Moving Suffolk are raising awareness of Mental Health Awareness Week during this challenging time. Many studies have shown that increasing how much you move each day can improve your mental health. For more information and lots of ways to keep active during this difficult time visit; www.keepmovingsuffolk.com/

 

• Local Job Vacancies: Health and social care providers are looking to recruit people so they can continue to provide their essential services during this difficult time.  Farms, food production businesses and supermarkets are also looking for workers so they can continue operating during the pandemic. The New Anglia LEP have a list of employment opportunities on their website; https://newanglia.co.uk/employment-opportunities/

 

• Guidance for returning to work: With government guidance now stating that, for some sectors, those who cannot work from home should return to work, Citizens Advice has outlined the top six need-to-knows when it comes to your employment rights. Click here to read.

 

• Fake and unlicensed Covid-19 medicines: Lynda Scammell, Senior Enforcement Advisor at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has warned the public about medicines and other medical products being sold online claiming to treat or prevent COVID-19. These include products being promoted as ‘miracle cures’, ‘divine cleansing oils’, ‘antiviral misting sprays’, herbal remedies, vitamins and unlicensed anti-viral medicines. For more information click here

 

 

Useful Websites (any new guidance is in RED)

The existing guidance is being updated extremely regularly so please check any guidance relevant to your area to ensure that you are accessing the most up to date version. We are not including in this table all the published material but some of the key guidance that would be relevant to Suffolk County Council and our partners

 

	Title	Who For	Comments
NEW	Coronavirus (COVID-19): support for care homes	care homes	New care homes support package backed by a £600 million adult social care infection control fund. The government has written to councils and care providers outlining the details of the support package and has provided additional advice and resources to help stop the spread of infection.
NEW	Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme	Employees	Collection of guidances to check if you can claim for wages through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and find out how to claim.
UPDATED	Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance for schools and other educational settings	staff, parents and carers, pupils and students.	Supporting vulnerable children and young people during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak – updated guidance to reflect wider plans for more year groups to return to education settings, stating that vulnerable children and young people remain a priority, and are expected to attend if appropriate. We have not changed the groups included in the definition of vulnerable children, but have provided further examples of what types of children might be considered to be ‘otherwise vulnerable’, at the education provider’s discretion. We have also included updated links to Public Health England advice. Updated guidance including adding a new section clarifying the position on welcoming back all children to early years settings from 1 June, information on when childminders can reopen to more children, and what provision they can currently provide, information on testing for essential workers, and information for parents on temporary changes to the 30 hours free early education entitlements. Providing free school meals during the coronavirus outbreak – Updated information about claiming for additional costs, providing meals or food parcels through your food provider and ordering vouchers to cover multiple weeks. Added ‘Safe working in education, childcare and children’s social care’.
UPDATED	Awarding qualifications in summer 2020	schools, students and parents	Added guidance for Heads of Centre, Heads of Department and teachers on objectivity in grading and ranking.
UPDATED	Coronavirus (COVID-19) and prisons	families and friends of those in prison	Secure video calls will be introduced to prisons and young offender institutions (YOIs) across England and Wales.
1	NHS – COVID-19 go-to page	General Public
2	GOV.UK – COVID-19 homepage	Main cover webpage for all government guidance for public & professionals alike
3	Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance	Main collection of guidance for anyone in any setting	Guidance includes: – Guidance for the public (incl. social distancing and shielding) – Guidance for non-clinical settings (incl. cleaning, educational settings, employees, employers, businesses, residential care, supported living and home care) – Guidance for health professionals – Infection prevention and control (incl. PPE) – Sampling and diagnostics
4	Staying alert and safe (social distancing)	Everyone	This has replaced previous guidance ‘Staying at home and away from others (social distancing)’
5	Coronavirus outbreak FAQs: what you can and can’t do	Everyone
6	Mental health support and advice from: WHO mentalhealth.org.uk Ipswich & East CCG Living Life To The Full NHS Practitioner Wellbeing Samaritans	General public, staff and carers
7	Chronic disease self- care during COVID-19: Asthma Diabetes	General public
8	European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) COVID-19 homepage	Professionals

 

 

Local Resources:

Below are any local resources that would be relevant to Suffolk County Council and our partners.  

 

	Title	Who For	Comments
	New Anglia: Employment Opportunities in Key Sectors in Norfolk and Suffolk	Individuals and Businesses wanting to know what employment opportunities are available in some of our key sectors	The New Anglia LEP – alongside other partners including local authorities – have pulled together lists and links to key employment roles needed now as part of the response to the current crisis.
	Suffolk Safeguarding Partnership	Everyone	The website aims to help everyone understand the signs of neglect or abuse and what to do if they are worried about a child or an adult.
	NEW ANGLIA GROWTH HUB	Businesses needing support ­	A one stop shop source of information for government support and guidance available to  businesses including 121 business advice sources of business grants and loans.
	Healthy Suffolk: COVID-19 Emotional Wellbeing, Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Information Hub	Everyone	This page contains links to a wealth of resources and support for your health and wellbeing.
	Suffolk County Council: Coronavirus information	Everyone	Suffolk County Council coronavirus (COVID-19) information, including health advice, service changes, business support and schools guidance.
	Keep Moving Suffolk	Everyone	The website contains free resources, ideas, tips, useful links and positive stories to encourage people to stay active during these unprecedented times.  The website and our social channels will be constantly updated.

 

 

Global: WHO Situation Report – reports available here

• WHO RISK ASSESSMENT (Global Level) – Very High
• WHO Covid-19 Dashboard for professionals using near real time data.
• GOARN COVID-19 Knowledge hub – central repository of quality public health information, guidance, tools and webinars which can be accessed freely at any point.

 

Situation in Numbers WHO SitRep 118, 17 May