Care Home Covid pilot scheme may help families to see loved ones this Christmas

FAMILY members or friends of those living in Care Homes will be given regular testing to reunite them with their loved ones after a new pilot launched, on Monday, 16 November 2020. If successful it will be rolled out more widely, in December 2020, raising hopes that families in Southport may be able to see relatives in time for Christmas. The scheme is dependent on Coronavirus cases being brought under control and people are being asked to do all they can to reduce any spread of the virus.

Southport MP Damien Moore said:- "This is very welcome news for people locally who have been facing a very challenging few months during this Covid19 Pandemic. I understand that families, and Care Home residents, have been missing that vital face to face contact during this time. Many Care Homes, in Southport, have gone the extra mile to use measures including:- Zoom video calling, screens and outside visits to help make some form of contact possible this year, and I commend them for doing so. I hope people locally continue with their efforts to bring down transmission of Covid19. Thanks to increased Coronavirus testing capacity, this new pilot scheme will hopefully ensure that families can see each other again as we approach Christmas."

The pilot is taking place in around 20 Care Homes across:- Hampshire, Cornwall and Devon, from Monday, 16 November 2020, and will be rolled out more widely in December in time for Christmas. Regular testing will be offered to 1 family member or friend per resident, which; when combined with other infection control measures such as PPE; will support meaningful visits. These will enable, where possible, indoor visits without a screen to take place while reducing the risk to Care Home residents, staff and visitors. Visitors will be offered either PCR tests which they can do at home, or the new 30 -minute rapid lateral flow tests (LFTs), which can be administered in person at Care Homes before a visit.

Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said:- "I know how heart breaking restricting visits to Care Homes has been, not only for residents, many of whom will feel disoriented and confused by the situation, but also their loved ones who aren't able to simply hug each other to support them in this difficult time. Thanks to the expanding testing capacity we have in place we can now begin to trial a new way to allow safer visits to take place and prevent the spread of Covid19. I must stress this is only possible if the public takes the right actions now to bring the transmission rate under control while national restrictions are in place. By respecting social distancing and staying at home as much as possible we will help reunite families and friends with loved ones in Care Homes as quickly as possible. We will be encouraging and supporting Care Homes to facilitate visits to go ahead in a Covid-secure way wherever possible."

The pilot, which forms part of plans to roll out mass testing technology across the country, has been made possible thanks to a huge expansion in the country's testing capacity, which currently stands at over 500,000 per day. Each Care Home receiving LFTs will receive a box of 675 initially and will be given access to more as required.

It will take place in Local Authority areas with lower transmission rates to ensure it can be done as safely as possible and care staff are being trained to ensure tests are administered safely and accurately. It will also further develop the evidence base for how testing with fast, reliable Covid19 tests can be delivered at scale. If successful, Care Home testing will be rolled out in a phased way across the country. But, any decision on a national roll out will be taken in light of the latest available data on transmission rates as a result of national Covid19 restrictions.

Exact details of the national roll out will be published in due course and will be guided by the pilot. It is anticipated the LFTs will be used across the country to support rapid access. If these faster tests work in this setting we will ring-fence supply to open up more chances for visiting.

PCC welcomes ₤200,000 aimed at preventing domestic abuse by tackling the perpetrator's behaviour

₤200,000 of new funding has been secured by Merseyside's Police Commissioner to expand a scheme that works with perpetrators of domestic abuse to change their behaviour and protect families which are at risk. Jane Kennedy made a successful bid for the Home Office funding to enhance the Males Actively Seeking Change (MASC) programme run by the charity Merseyside Domestic Violence Service (MDVS) with the aim of further reducing the number of domestic abuse victims.

MDVS run a 26 week behavioural change programme for men who have not been convicted of domestic abuse, but are identified as potential perpetrators. This new funding will enable them, in a new partnership with the charity Change Grow Live (CGL), to extend their work to include high risk convicted men, particularly those who have repeatedly committed offences of domestic abuse and have previously caused significant harm. The programme, which was launched in 2014, works to change the behaviour of violent and controlling individuals, while keeping their partners and children safe. MDVS work closely with the female partners, or ex-partners of the men, as well as their families, to identify patterns of obsessive and abusive behaviour, taking proactive steps to prevent the males from re-offending, while safeguarding their families.

Merseyside's Police Commissioner Jane Kennedy said:- "I am committed to tackling domestic abuse and that mean's preventing it from happening in the 1st place, if we can. To do that we have to work with the perpetrators, those offenders who are physically and emotionally abusing their partners and who bring misery and suffering to their families. The Merseyside Domestic Violence Service have been doing crucial work protecting some of the most vulnerable members of our community for more than 2 decades. Through this new funding they will be able to expand and enhance their work so they can work with high-risk, serial perpetrators to tackle their offending behaviour and thereby improve their families' lives for the better."

The new funding will enable 10 staff to be employed, including a Violence Reduction Coordinator. who will liaise between the Police and support agencies to ensure female victims or potential victims and their families are fully protected, while pulling together information about the perpetrators to build a detailed picture of their offending behaviour. The project will also benefit from a dedicated family support worker who will work with children and young people affected by domestic abuse, as well as the expertise of an Independent Stalking Advocacy Caseworker who will work will perpetrators who are using coercive control and stalking to intimidate their victims. In partnership with CGL, the programme will include work to tackle substance abuse and address mental health issues, which evidence shows is often a significant contributing factor in incidences of domestic abuse and increases the risk to victims. MDVS already has a bank of trusted volunteers working within Merseyside's BAME communities, and they will work to ensure victims and survivors in those communities have a voice, ensuring male perpetrators from communities that can be closed are brought to justice.

MDVS's service manager Ayla Nasuh said:- "As the Service Manager, I am immensely proud to have this opportunity to work alongside Merseyside Police and the Police Commissioner to tackle domestic abuse at the root cause of the problem. I urge those who are perpetrating domestic abuse to come forward to access MASC, a 26 week programme which is available now. There are no costs attached to the programme and we will be working in partnership with Change Live Grow, CGL, to offer holistic support in areas of substance misuse, homelessness and poverty. The Chief Executive of MDVS, Jacqui Nasuh, and our Trustees would like to thank the PCC, Jane Kennedy and her team for supporting our work, this is a huge step forward in breaking the cycle of domestic abuse across all communities."

Rachel Fance, Service Manager for St Helens Integrated Recovery Service, Change Grow Live, said:- "We are really excited to have this opportunity to work with Merseyside Domestic Violence Services. We feel that this intervention for perpetrators of domestic violence and the additional support for victims will be hugely beneficial for both our services users and the ST Helens community overall."

Liverpool City Council's Cabinet Member for Communities and Partnerships Cllr Liz Parsons said:- "Domestic abuse is a serious crime that can have devastating impact on the lives of victims and their families. Tackling domestic abuse has been a key priority for us for a number of years and I am delighted that we could support MDVS with this bid and that they have been successful in securing funding."

If you've been affected by domestic abuse, call the Police on:- 101 to report it or find a support agency that can help on the Victim Care Merseyside website.