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Wiltshire Council COVID-19 update

April 18, 2020
in Latest news, Wiltshire Council
Reading Time: 8 mins read
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We will be providing updates on our services on our website and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

For central government updates follow:
Public Health England
NHS
Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Wiltshire Wellbeing Hub supporting thousands of people

Click for a larger version.

We know this is a difficult time for many and through our Wiltshire Wellbeing Hub we are working hard to ensure the most vulnerable in our community get the support they need.

If you need support, or know someone who does, the Wiltshire Wellbeing Hub can be contacted on 0300 003 4576 or by email at wellbeinghub@wiltshire.gov.uk.

The hub is open Monday to Friday, 8am – 8pm and weekends, 10am – 4pm.
So far, we have contacted more than 8,000 people and delivered more than 600 food parcels, so please get in touch if you need to.

Find out more about the Wiltshire Wellbeing Hub

Help us promote the Wiltshire Wellbeing Hub

We are keen to spread the word far and wide about the Wiltshire Wellbeing Hub and the support it can provide.

To help us with this, and to give the kids (or adults!) something fun to do, we have designed a colouring-in sheet that you can print off and stick in your window. If you don’t have a printer, feel free to design your own – the most important thing is that people who need support know that the hub is there for them.

The sheets can be found below, or alternatively there is a poster that you can display. Thanks for your support

  • #WiltshireTogether Wiltshire Wellbeing Hub colour in sheet
  • Wiltshire Wellbeing Hub – black and white poster
  • Wiltshire Wellbeing Hub – colour poster

An open letter to care providers

Every Thursday at 8pm it’s been clear how appreciative people are of NHS staff, carers and key workers.

We have written an open letter to staff in care homes and domiciliary care providers to thank them for the vital role they are playing in supporting vulnerable residents during this time. The letter is from Wiltshire Council Leader Cllr Philip Whitehead, Cabinet Member for Public Health Cllr Laura Mayes, and Chief Executive Officers Alistair Cunningham and Terence Herbert.

Read the full letter

Initiative to support members of our walking groups

Our sports development team has launched ‘Walkie Talkie’ – a new initiative to support the members of our walking sports groups during this difficult time and help them stay connected to each other.

The initiative allows participants from the weekly walking football, netball and rugby sessions throughout the county to phone in from home and have a conversation with each other in a group environment – maintaining the social-element that many of the members find so vital.

A walking netball participant said “Social interaction is hugely important to our overall wellbeing and now even more so with the current restrictions. Any way to try and maintain the friendships that have formed from being a part of the walking netball family is really important to us. To have access to a Walkie Talkie group is helpful and beneficial to so many people who may be socially isolated at this time”.

For more information on the Walkie Talkie sessions you can email sportsdevelopment@wiltshire.gov.uk

Pack to keep you and your family active

We have created a range of activity packs to support you while you’re staying at home. The packs are suitable for everyone but have been designed with specific audiences in mind – adults, older people, those with a disability, young people, and individuals who previously took part in our swimming and gymnastics sessions.

Each pack contains tailored ideas for people to get active, be creative, stay in contact and keep focussed, all from the comfort of your own home.

They are part of our Active Communities online resources which covers a variety of topics, including the various library services available online – rhyme times, story times, e-books/magazines, resources on getting creative through mediums like song, dance, art and literature and opportunities to explore Wiltshire’s history.

Get the activity packs

Public Health England launches ‘Looking Out For Each Other’ campaign

Throughout this ongoing situation we have seen communities up and down the county support one another. Public Health England has launched some resources to support the good work already happening in Wiltshire. The campaign highlights simple messages to ensure that people keep in touch with each other and help pick up food or medicines for anyone who is unable to do so.

Find out more about the campaign

RSPCA help during COVID-19

The RSPCA has produced a poster that can be downloaded and filled in by members of the public who have pets/animals. The aim being they will approach family/friends/neighbours who can care for their pets if they are hospitalised.

This poster should be displayed in a visible place, for example on the fridge, etc so that the emergency services can see plans have already been made for the animals. Please do share this with the public in your community to try and help ease the pressure on the Adult Social Care teams in finding boarding spaces for animals.

Guidance has been produced on dog walking and we would urge you to share this widely so that dog owners and all dog walkers are aware of it. It sets out sensible measures to ensure dogs can still be exercised with precautions taken for them and people.

Download the poster

Support to keep your body and mind healthy

It’s important we do what we can to look after ourselves during this time. Alcohol can affect your mental state and weaken your immune system. The NHS’s One You service has a free app to help you to keep to sensible drinking limits, keep active, eat healthily and support your mental wellbeing.

Visit the One You website

 

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Choose a monthly subscription or a one-off donation. All donations will be reinvested into producing local journalism for Melksham.

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A survey is set to be carried out to gather residents’ feedback on a possible parking permit scheme for Union Street.

The survey will be carried out by Melksham Town Council and will be distributed to all households on Union Street and four households on Lowbourne to gauge support for resident-only permit bays along Union Street, which could be introduced when Lowbourne Car Park closes.

The car park is due to shut when planned older people’s flats are built on the former library site, leading to a potential loss of parking for local residents.

Following residents’ concerns about the loss of parking provision, a motion for a permit scheme was put forward by Cllr Jennie Westbrook earlier this year and referred to Wiltshire Council’s Local Highway and Footway Improvement Group. The group advised that a residents’ survey would be needed to measure support.

At the Economic Development and Planning Committee meeting on 7th April, Cllr Westbrook asked councillors to instruct town council officers to carry out the survey. 

Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.
  • Plant sale returns to Whitley

A plant sale is being held in Whitley on 2nd May, with a variety of plants including summer flowers and vegetables.

The Shaw and Whitley Garden Club’s Annual Plant Sale will be held outside the Methodist Chapel on Top Lane. The sale will run from 10am to 12pm.

Organisers say, “It’s an event for everyone interested in gardening and club members will be happy to answer questions about the plants and how they grow them.

“Shaw and Whitley Garden Club is a thriving and welcoming village group which has seen a rise in membership in the last year or two. They have a very full programme every year, including speakers on all aspects of gardening, visits both near and far, and social events. Members have already seen some gardens around England and Wales which are ‘off the beaten track’ and learnt about dealing with pests. They are also looking forward to enjoying a number of visits later in the year, including to RHS Garden Wisley.” 

Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.
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The story of a former canal which ran through Melksham has been uncovered in a new online book.

The Lost Waterway of Melksham, by Peter Williams, traces the history of the Wilts & Berks Canal from Semington to Lacock.

It features unprecedented research, as well as previously unpublished photographs and documents.

The Wilts & Berks Canal opened in 1810, and for more than a century, narrowboats pulled by horses and donkeys carried stone, timber, salt, beer, flour, beans, oil and other items. At its peak in 1840, more than 55,000 tons of coal were brought through the Semington junction from the Somerset coalfields.

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Pictured: Author Peter Williams in front of the Clackers Brook culvert beneath the canal embankment at Hampshire Place.

Melksham Forest Lock, which lifted the canal on the way to Lacock, in the late 1800s. Melksham Wharf, circa 1900 (Historic photos courtesy of Melksham & District Historical Association)
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Two raised traffic islands will be installed on the road, close to Melksham Oak Community School and to the east of the Hornchurch Road junction.

This follows residents’ complaints that drivers are using the hatched ghost island areas to pass turning traffic and driving onto the wrong side of the road.

To monitor the incidents and the need for safety measures, Wiltshire Council installed a covert camera last year, which recorded 79 overtaking manoeuvres at this location over a seven-day period.

Chair of Bowerhill Residents’ Action Group (BRAG) Mark Blackham said, “The issue is most prevalent when travelling east from Melksham towards Devizes. As drivers slow down to turn right into Hornchurch Road, some motorists, assuming they have already left the village, accelerate and attempt to overtake using the hatched area. When a driver begins to manoeuvre into the right-turn lane, these overtaking motorists often double-down, forcing themselves onto the wrong side of the road and into oncoming traffic. 

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Pictured: Mark Blackham (centre) with Cllr Nick Holder (right) and a representative from Wiltshire Council.
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Ben Veal, who hosts the Good Journeys Podcast, revisits some of the most powerful episodes in his new book, reshaping them into concise chapters designed to be read in 10 to 15 minutes, each ending with three actionable life lessons.

Titled Good Journeys, the book draws on four years of deeply personal podcast conversations.

Ben said, “The chapters are accessible and reflective, designed for readers navigating change, seeking clarity or reassessing their direction in life.”

Good Journeys shines a spotlight on many purpose-driven individuals from the South West, including Grace Farrimond, founder of Young Blooms florist and RHS Chelsea award winner; Robin Worrall, creative director of Rednine brand + design; Sarah Perrett, emotion code practitioner and founder of The Happiness Gap; and Esther Champion, founder of Bristol-based Myrtos Consultancy. 

Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.
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Shaw CE Primary School is consulting staff, governors, parents and residents of Shaw and Whitley after mounting concerns about the speed and volume of traffic on roads by the school.

Headteacher Amy Edwards said, “These dangers were highlighted recently when a car overturned on Corsham Road at about 4pm one afternoon.”

Following the consultation, the school is aiming to create a new travel plan and is calling for Wiltshire Council to reduce the current speed limit from George Ward Gardens to Shaw Church to 30mph and to impose a 20mph limit on Shaw Hill and Corsham Road. 

Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.

Pictured: l-r Amy Edwards and school governor Sue Evans
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A team from a Bowerhill-based business picked up their paint brushes and donned their overalls to help local charity 4Youth revamp their premises. 

Employees from Knorr-Bremse Rail Systems UK spent the day decorating at the Canberra Centre on Spa Road to make the space feel fun and welcoming. They also donated paint, paintbrushes, rollers and decorations including pictures and cushions.

The company, which employs around 470 people at its headquarters in Westinghouse Way, has a charity committee that chooses local organisations to support throughout the year. The team chose to help 4Youth in recognition of its work supporting young people in the area.

4Youth (South West), previously known as Young Melksham, hosts a range of activities for young people. It also has separate counselling rooms for private one-to-one support through its TeenTalk service, as well as a sensory room. 

Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.
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Melksham soft play centre Boomerang is relaunching its popular children’s evening sessions alongside the introduction of an exciting new inter-active play feature.

Club Boom, aimed at children in school Years 4 to 6, will return from Friday 1st May and run weekly from 6pm to 8pm. The sessions offer a supervised environment where children can use the facilities with friends, providing what organisers describe as a safe and energetic evening activity.

To mark the relaunch, Boomerang is offering 100 free tickets for the opening night.

Alongside the return of Club Boom, the centre has also introduced Wakka Tag, a new £30,000 interactive game installed inside the main soft play frame. The system allows children to tap sensors, score points and compete against others as they move around the play structure.

“Wakka Tag is designed to bring something new to every visit - encouraging repeat play, friendly competition, and a completely different experience each time,” said Gary Cooke. “With prizes up for grabs and leaderboards to chase, it adds a modern twist to traditional soft play - and early reactions from children have already been hugely positive.” 

Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.
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