Remembrance Sunday Service at St Mary the Virgin, Upchurch

Remembrance Sunday Service

8th November 2020 at 10:30am

St Mary the Virgin, Upchurch

A service of Remembrance will be held in St Mary’s church, Upchurch on Sunday 8th November 2020 to include a two-minute silence at 11:00am. However, due to the Covid-19 restrictions, it will have to be different from usual as we cannot welcome the usual number of people into the church.

The service will begin at 10:30am and there will be limited seating available. To reserve a place at the service, please ring:

Jill Rothery, the Church Warden, on: 01795 481694. From Sunday 1st November onwards.

Please look out for further details on Upchurch Matters, on St Mary's Upchurch Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/stmarysupchurch and on notices at the church.

“WE WILL REMEMBER THEM”

Sue Rossiter

Surgery Patient Participation Group - Upchurch & Rainham

Dr Supriya Das & Dr Lakshmi Subbiah

The following items were discussed at the last PPG meeting:

Face Coverings

Face coverings are to be worn at all times when attending the Surgery for appointments with the Nurse/Doctor. This also applies to Healthy Living Centres and Hospitals in the area.

Face masks donated by the council have now run out, therefore it is imperative that patients bring their own with them when attending the Surgery for an appointment.

Flu Vaccinations 

All those requiring a Flu vaccination would have been dealt with i.e. 65yrs and above and all those that show at risk from their medical records.

The next batch is due in November for those 50-65yrs and when received, the dates will be circulated on Upchurch Matters website or the practice website in order for patients to telephone for an appointment.

Maidstone Road Practice - Targets

Staff have received training in respect of early cancer diagnosis, thereby ensuring an immediate referral to the cancer unit and monitor “follow up” appointments are being issued and kept by the patient, i.e. cervical screening for those females aged 25-64yrs. Nationally the level is 72.4%. Medway CCG is 74.9% and our practice is 83.7%.

Also training to identify patients who have learning difficulties and quite often attend on their own, ensuring they get the right support and regular “follow up”.

Letters received by patients from the Medway Hospital or other outside clinics

There is a delay in the practice receiving letters following an appointment at the Hospital or Clinic, therefore it is requested that patients drop into the Surgery with the letter they receive from the Hospital/Clinic in order for the Practice to update patients records locally. Thank you.

Maidstone Road Practice Website

The website is: www.maidstoneroadsurgeryrainham.co.uk

The Practice would like patients views/comments about the website.

Any comments, please Email: g82180.surgery@nhs.net and mark them “For the attention of Nurse, Bonnie Olsen”.

Ray Kemsley

Chair - Surgery Patient Participation Group - Upchurch & Rainham

Thank You from Foodbank Co-ordinator Gill Gay and Swale Foodbank

Thank you, Upchurch.

Your heart is way bigger than your village ♥️

You are amazing!

God bless you all - Gill & Ron

Gill Gay - Foodbank Co-ordinator

Email: gilliangay99@yahoo.co.uk

Swale Borough Council Meets with KCC Director of Health to Discuss the Rise in Covid Infections in the Borough

Leading members of Swale Borough Council met with Andrew Scott-Clark, Director of Public Health at Kent County Council (KCC), yesterday (26th Oct) to discuss the recorded rise of Covid infections in Swale.

On behalf of KCC - the lead authority in monitoring and controlling the spread of the virus in the county - Mr Scott-Clark confirmed that Swale had the highest level of infections in Kent at 102 per 100,000 people.

While this is still below the national average, Mr Scott-Clark explained that the virus was spreading much more seriously amongst younger people than in the first wave, and that the Isle of Sheppey had the highest levels in the borough, with some higher levels also emerging in Central Sittingbourne and Milton.

He reported that a number of cases in workplaces in Swale were a cause for concern, particularly because transmission looks to be happening outside the workplace as people socialise together. Care homes and food distribution companies are also a cause for concern.

Thankfully there are some areas of the borough with very low levels of infection and the council is working closely with KCC to keep the public properly informed.

Both the council and KCC are concerned about alarming messages being publicised in print and social media, and cabinet members are concerned that this could cause a mixture of fatigue and complacency making suppression of this second wave more difficult.

Cllr Angela Harrison, cabinet member for health and wellbeing at the council, said:

“It is of utmost importance that we do not become complacent when it comes to protecting ourselves, our families and our communities.

“Whilst we mourn every death and understand the impact it has on families, we did not suffer the same impact in the first wave as many other parts of the country.

“This second wave already suggests that we’re facing a real challenge, and we urge people to adhere to government guidelines by washing your hands frequently, wearing a face covering and remembering to maintain social distancing.

“Thankfully levels of hospitalisation are manageable for the moment, but we cannot take our NHS for granted.

“Alongside studying infection rates and levels of hospitalisation, we are also out visiting businesses to ensure they are covid compliant and sharing information and advice with them.”

Cllr Roger Truelove, leader at the council, said:

“Our officers have started compliance checks in the pubs and restaurants in our towns and have found good compliance procedures.

“Businesses have been welcoming and are clearly working very hard to keep their customers safe, however we did have some concerns about take away food businesses and will work with them to ensure they are compliant.

“We will soon be visiting rural establishments and hope for the same high standard we’ve seen so far.

“During lockdown earlier this year, we monitored the situation daily, and reported to the senior leadership team and cabinet every week to ensure we were doing everything we could to keep the residents of the borough safe, and will do the same again now that we are experiencing a second wave.

“We urge you to do your bit to limit the spread of the virus and keep your family and community safe.”

Swale Borough Council

Swale Borough Council Proposes New Housing Company

Swale Borough Council is proposing to set up a housing company to help deliver affordable homes for local people.

A report going to cabinet on Wednesday, 28th October proposes setting up a local housing company to increase the supply of affordable homes in the borough, without placing a financial burden on the council.

If approved, council-owned land at the old bus depot in East Street Sittingbourne, Fountain Street and Cockleshell Walk car park would be transferred to the company to provide around 139 new properties, in exchange for an equity share in the company.

Ben J Martin, cabinet member for housing at the council, said:

“The prospect of setting up of a housing company is a key indicator of the high priority we place on delivering decent affordable housing residents need, and, if approved, will enable us to intervene directly in the local housing market.

“It would also give us control of the density, location, environmental standards and management of any scheme, so we won’t be at the mercy of developers trying to maximise profit.

“By owning equity shares in the company, we can get an income stream on assets that should go up in value over time, which reduces the financial risk to the council.

“We estimate build costs, energy efficiency and lifecycle costs of developing, managing and maintaining the initially planned 139 properties to be up to £23 million, which we would initially pay for through 50-year loans to the company.

“If approved, the company will enable us to build additional affordable housing, on top of the ones provided through the planning system, and housing associations utilising their homes England grant money in Swale.

“This would be a real ray of hope for local people who are in need of local, affordable housing.”

Cllr Ghlin Whelan, deputy cabinet member for housing at the council, said:

“This is an exciting opportunity for us to provide the affordable housing the borough so desperately needs.

“Social housing is a nationwide issue and councils are looking for ways to meet the demand without being at the mercy of large developers.

“The number of people needing local, affordable housing is only rising, and it’s our duty to do what we can to meet that need.”

The full report can be viewed here

Swale Borough Council

KCC Announces Dedicated Helpline for Free School Meals Support This Half-term

Kent County Council has announced vouchers for food are available during half-term for families whose children are eligible for free school meals, so that no Kent child goes hungry.

The county’s families most in need will receive supermarket vouchers for each eligible child to ensure they are able to feed their children outside of term time.

A dedicated helpline has been set up and is now open so that Kent’s low-income families are able to quickly and easily access the help they need when they need it most, including during the school holidays. Families who apply will receive one voucher of £15 per child.

The announcement comes after KCC Leader Roger Gough pledged that no child should ever go hungry during school holidays, or at any time.

Speaking after today’s announcement, Mr Gough said:

“Kent County Council and our partners in district and borough councils have already helped thousands of Kent residents, including families with school-aged children, since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the weekend, with the half-term holiday approaching, I reminded residents about the help the Kent Together helpline and webpage offer and urged anyone who was struggling to contact us.

We have now taken that offer of help a step further, setting up a dedicated helpline families can call to apply for vouchers for Free School Meals to be used in a local supermarket during the school holidays. This dedicated helpline will streamline and speed up the process so we can get urgent help to those that need it.

This support for families in need has always been in place. I hope, though, that this helpline will enable people who need urgent help to get it, and to get it quickly.

Now, more than ever, it is imperative that we support the most vulnerable within our community. I hope that this service will quickly provide families with the help they need and ensure that no child in Kent is left to go hungry.”

Anyone eligible for free school meals who needs extra financial support to help feed their children can now visit www.kent.gov.uk/freeschoolmeals or call the dedicated helpline on 03000 41 24 24. You have until next Monday 2nd November 5:00pm to apply.

Meanwhile, the KentTogether helpline remains open for any other Kent resident who needs support with food, collection of medication and prescriptions and other urgent needs during the pandemic, 24 hours a day. You can get help by visiting www.kent.gov.uk/kenttogether or calling 03000 41 92 92.

Suz Elvey

Kent County Council