Christine “Chris” Edwards

Dorothy, Liz and Clive & family, would like to extend their thanks to friends and residents of Utkinton and ladies of the WI, for their great kindness and support during the illness and sad passing of Chris.

Your thoughts, many cards and flowers have meant so much to us during this very difficult time and we will always appreciate the offers of help and great kindness shown to us from this very caring community.

By clicking on the link below you should be able to download the Order forms for Rose Farm Shop and print them off.  They need to be with the shop by 15th December if you want to avail yourself of this excellent service.

Rose Farm Online shopping

This is taken from gov.uk 

Tier 2: High alert

This is for areas with a higher or rapidly rising level of  infections, where some additional restrictions need to be in place.

In tier 2:

• you must not socialise with anyone you do not live with or who is not in your support bubble in any indoor setting, whether at home or in a public place
• you must not socialise in a group of more than 6 people outside, including in a garden or a public space – this is called the ‘rule of 6’
• businesses and venues can continue to operate, in a COVID-Secure manner, other than those which remain closed by law, such as nightclubs
• pubs and bars must close, unless operating as restaurants. Hospitality venues can only serve alcohol with substantial meals
• hospitality businesses selling food or drink for consumption on their premises are required to:
  • provide table service only, in premises which sell alcohol
  • close between 11pm and 5am (hospitality venues in airports, ports, transport services and motorway service areas are exempt)
  • stop taking orders after 10pm
• hospitality businesses and venues selling food and drink for consumption off the premises can continue to do so after 10pm as long as this is through delivery service, click-and-collect or drive-through
• early closure (11pm) applies to casinos, cinemas, theatres, museums, bowling alleys, amusement arcades, funfairs, theme parks, adventure parks and activities, and bingo halls. Cinemas, theatres and concert halls can stay open beyond 11pm in order to conclude performances  that start before 10pm
• public attendance at outdoor and indoor events (performances and shows) is permitted, limited to whichever is lower: 50% capacity, or either 2,000 people outdoors or 1,000 people indoors
• public attendance at spectator sport and business events can resume inside and outside, subject to social contact rules and limited to whichever is lower: 50% capacity, or either 2,000 people outdoors or 1,000 people indoors
• places of worship remain open but you must not socialise with people from outside of your household or support bubble while you are indoors there, unless a legal exemption applies
• weddings and funerals can go ahead with restrictions on numbers of attendees – 15 people can attend wedding ceremonies and receptions, 30 people can attend funeral ceremonies, and 15 people can attend linked commemorative events such as wakes  or stonesettings.
• organised outdoor sport, and physical activity and exercise classes can continue
• organised indoor sport, physical activity and exercise classes will only be permitted if it is possible for people to avoid mixing with people they do not live with (or share a support bubble with). There are exceptions for indoor disability sport, sport for educational purposes and supervised sport and physical activity for under-18s, which can take place with larger groups mixing
• you can continue to travel to venues or amenities which are open, but should aim to reduce the number of journeys you make where possible
• if you live in a tier 2 area, you must continue to follow tier 2 rules when you travel to a tier 1 area. Avoid travel to or overnight stays in tier 3 areas other than where necessary, such as for work, education, youth services, to receive medical treatment, or because of caring responsibilities.You can travel through a tier 3 area as a part of a longer journey
• for international travel see the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office travel advice for your destination and the travel corridors list

Just had this notification from the Reopen Beeston Station Facebook Group – it al looks quite positive and will be a shot in the arm for the Tarporley Ward ‘Connecting the Dots’ transport project – Well done to Michael Flynn and the group;

Success

Yesterday evening the DfT announced that we have been successful in our bid to the Beeching Reversal ‘Ideas Fund’ for resources to progress the project to the next stage of development.

This is just the start of a long process, but it is a major achievement for all of those who worked so long and so hard to prepare an outstanding proposal.

There were over 50 bids submitted to the Department and, only 15 have been successful in progressing to the next stage, so this is a major vote of confidence in the project.

I would particularly like to thank our local MP Edward Timpson for his unswerving support and sponsorship, without which this success would simply not have been possible.

The award is for £50,000 towards developing a formal business case, and also comes with the pledge of Department for Transport support to ensure that the next phase—a submission to the Stations Fund for funding to construct and commission the station—is robust and capable of approval.

The next step is for us to establish a more formal organisation and I will be posting about this and asking for volunteers to fulfil various roles in due course, but for now, it’s time to celebrate this first success in the journey to getting our station reopened!

You may have seen the news piece on NW Tonight or Granada and this press article.

We wish Dilys the very best.

Happy Birthday Dilys

Copyright Northwich Guardian 2020

We have been asked if we would post this

Avian Influenza outbreaks

Local:

Premises near Frodsham, Cheshire

Avian influenza (HPAI) of the H5N8 strain was confirmed at a premises near Frodsham in Cheshire which rears broiler breeder chickens on 2 November 2020. On the 3 November further testing confirmed this to be a high pathogenicity strain (HPAI H5N8).  A 3km Protection Zone and a 10km Surveillance Zone have been put in place around the infected premises to limit the risk of the disease spreading. Public Health England (PHE) advises that the risk to public health from the virus is very low and the Food Standards Agency advises that avian influenzas pose a very low food safety risk for UK consumers. Properly cooked poultry and poultry products, including eggs, are safe to eat.

Further details can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/avian-influenza-bird-flu#movement-controls-and-licences

https://www.yourwestcheshire.co.uk/NewsArticle/%7B47F01839-50B6-4CEF-B60F-714BA53281EC%7D

National:

*The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) are posting and tweeting about the latest updates on Avian influenza.  Please share any relevant posts via your social media channels to help communicate the key messages and restrictions:

Gov.uk news story – https://www.gov.uk/government/news/avian-influenza-bird-flu-national-prevention-zone-declared

Message from Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA)

Top lines:

• An Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) has been declared across the whole of England to mitigate the risk of the disease spreading
• This means it is a legal requirement for all bird keepers to follow strict biosecurity measures.
• The risk level of avian influenza incursion in wild birds in Great Britain has been raised from ‘medium to ‘high’ following two unrelated confirmed cases in England this week and increasing reports of the disease affecting flocks in mainland Europe.
• Public Health England has confirmed that the risk to public health is very low and the Food Standards Agency has said that bird flu poses a very low food safety risk for UK consumers.
• Bird keepers should remain alert for any signs of disease, report suspected disease immediately and ensure they are maintaining good biosecurity on their premises.
• Avian Influenza is in no way connected to the COVID-19 pandemic which is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus which is not carried in poultry.

Biosecurity actions for poultry keepers (both commercial and recreational/back yard keepers)

The prevention zone means bird keepers across the country must:

• Ensure the areas where birds are kept are unattractive to wild birds, for example by netting ponds, and by removing wild bird food sources;
• Feed and water your birds in enclosed areas to discourage wild birds;
• Minimise movement in and out of bird enclosures;
• Clean and disinfect footwear and keep areas where birds live clean and tidy;
• Reduce any existing contamination by cleansing and disinfecting concrete areas, and fencing off wet or boggy areas.

The prevention zone will be in place until further notice and will be kept under regular review as part of our work to monitor the threat of bird flu.

Poultry keepers and members of the public should report dead wild birds to the Defra helpline on 03459 33 55 77 and keepers should report suspicion of disease to APHA on 03000 200 301. Keepers should familiarise themselves with our avian flu advice.

Wild birds:

• There have been a number of confirmed reports of avian influenza in wild birds including geese and swans in the Netherlands and northern Germany in recent weeks. These wild birds are all on the waterfowl flyway from breeding grounds in western Russia, where the H5N8 strain was reported in poultry in mid-October.
• Wild birds migrating to the UK from mainland Europe during the winter period can spread the disease to poultry and other captive birds.
• All bird keepers and members of the public are being urged to prevent direct or indirect contact with wild birds.
• Public Health England (PHE) advises that the risk to public health from the virus is very low and the Food Standards Agency advises that avian influenzas pose a very low food safety risk for UK consumers. Properly cooked poultry and poultry products, including eggs, are safe to eat.

Chief Veterinary Officer Christine Middlemiss said:

“It is important now more than ever that bird keepers ensure they are doing all they can to maintain and strengthen biosecurity measures on their premises to prevent further outbreaks.

“Public Health England has confirmed that the risk to public health is very low and the Food Standards Agency advises that bird flu poses a very low food safety risk for UK consumers.

“We ask that people continue to report findings of dead wild birds so that we can investigate the extent of infection.”

At the risk of being branded as a rumour-monger, we have just been alerted to the fact that C-19 may be in our village.  We were told, this morning, that there are four suspected cases and would simply reinforce the need for ALL residents to take great care and remember the latest mantra:

HANDS – wash them regularly

FACE – wear a mask

SPACE – ensure social distancing.

Covid is no respecter of peoples health.

If you need hand sanitiser let one of your ‘buddies know’

Good evening, I have had a couple of queries related to an earlier post that said the vacancy had been filled.  That page relates to a much earlier vacancy (if that makes sense).  We are still looking to fill the current vacancy but have postponed interviews until the new year as we have a Locum in place.

Any candidates who have applied will be notified as soon as we pick it up again.

Many thanks to all who applied

Francis Tunney

Chair

We held a socially distanced Remembrance Day on Sunday 8th November attended by a few people (residents and visitors) plus the Mounted Horse ‘squad’ of ‘Trooper’, ‘Molly’ and “Friday’.

Harrison Hughes laid the wreath and the Chair of the Council (Frank Tunney) read a verse from Laurence Binyon’s poem ‘ For the Fallen’.

Thanks to all those who attended.

‘We will remember them’

We have asked CWaC about the impact of the current lockdown insofar as the closure of village halls etc. is concerned and they have sent us this revised link;

http://consult.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/portal/cwc_ldf/np/utkinton_cotebrook_pub

Please feel free to pass this on – we will also post it on our social media feed.