Liverpool City Region COVID-19 Updates

YOU can get daily major and interesting news updates for the Liverpool City Region on our free email news service, via signing up on:- Formby Reporter. If you have any updates to send in or any views on the posts on here, please email us to:- News24@SouthportReporter.Com.

Struggling in Liverpool over Christmas? We Are With You

THERE'S no need to go through Christmas alone, despite Coronavirus restrictions, says We Are With You in Liverpool. The necessary restrictions to control the spread of the Coronavirus mean that many people in Liverpool face the prospect of spending Christmas away from their family and friends. Over the last nine months, drug, alcohol and mental health charity:- 'We Are With You' which covers Liverpool; has seen the impact of lockdown restrictions across the UK. Its research shows that:-

► More than 4 million people aged over 50 are binge drinking once a week.

► More than 6 million people have been worried about the drinking of someone they know.

The number of people accessing:- 'We Are With You's' online web chat service increased by 91% in October / November when compared to the same time in 2019. Annie Lynn, who manages We Are With You in Liverpool, said:- "2020 has been a really tough year for everyone. We have seen first-hand the toll that increased isolation and the stress of living through a pandemic has taken on some people within our community. Christmas is normally a time for people to come together; to feel connected with friends and family. Many people won't be able to experience this properly this year. We know that becoming isolated can often lead people to drink more or use drugs, so it's really important people are aware that support is available during the festive period."

If you are concerned about your own, or someone else's, alcohol or drug use this Christmas, you can reach We Are With You in Liverpool on:- 01517067888 or you can talk anonymously to a trained advisor via the online web chat service; just go to:- WeAreWithYou.Org.UK.

New NHS Community Services provider announced

NHS Southport and Formby Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) has announced that from May 2021 Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust will be the new provider of community Health Services for its residents following a rigorous re-procurement process. Community Health Services is the collective name for a wide range of care, including:- Blood Testing, District Nursing, falls prevention and diabetes care and education. Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCft), in line with its strategic direction to provide local services to Lancashire and South Cumbria residents did not bid to continue to provide community services.

Dr Rob Caudwell, chair of NHS Southport and Formby CCG, said:- "Community services are often the most commonly used healthcare that our residents will come into contact with after their GP, which is why this process has been so important in helping us select the right organisation to manage these services in the future. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the continued hard work of all those staff who currently provide our community Health Services as part of Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust, particularly during this challenging time as we all respond to the Coronavirus Pandemic. Over the coming months Mersey Care will be working with LSCft to ensure that when it takes over in May 2021, it's as smooth and seamless a transfer as possible for patients and community service staff alike. This is about a change in who manages these services, not about direct care, so patients should not notice any difference to the community services they use, or to the staff who provide them on 1 May 2021."

Across the NHS, commissioners have contracts with organisations like Community Health Trusts and Hospitals, which set out standards for the services they provide. Commissioners also have a legal duty to carry out re-procurement exercises for these contracts from time to time. This importantly ensures that healthcare constantly meets expected levels of quality and that it continues to represent best value.

Joe Rafferty, Chief Executive of Mersey Care, said:- "We're delighted to have been awarded this contract and we believe we can build on the fantastic skills and expertise of colleagues from LSCft. We want to work together to achieve our ambition of providing world class care as close to home as possible. Mersey Care has a long tradition of community services in Sefton and Liverpool and I'm sure we can continue to provide high class care for everyone we serve during some of the most challenging times ever known within the NHS."

It announcement also means that from 1 May 2021 there will be a single provider of community Health Services across the whole of Sefton. Mersey Care currently provides these services for NHS South Sefton CCG. Rob added:- "We know from speaking to residents that they want as much of their care provided as close to home as possible in the community so they only have to go to Hospital when they really to and for all the services they use to work better together. Our Sefton2gether strategy has been informed by these views and over time our new provider will be working towards this vision for future health and care, where services are more joined up and therefore more effective in meeting the needs of our patients."

NHS Southport and Formby Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) has announced that from May 2021 Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust will be the new provider of community Health Services for its residents following a rigorous re-procurement process. Community Health Services is the collective name for a wide range of care, including:- Blood Testing, District Nursing, falls prevention and diabetes care and education. Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCft), in line with its strategic direction to provide local services to Lancashire and South Cumbria residents did not bid to continue to provide community services.

Dr Rob Caudwell, chair of NHS Southport and Formby CCG, said:- "Community services are often the most commonly used healthcare that our residents will come into contact with after their GP, which is why this process has been so important in helping us select the right organisation to manage these services in the future. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the continued hard work of all those staff who currently provide our community Health Services as part of Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust, particularly during this challenging time as we all respond to the coronavirus Pandemic. Over the coming months Mersey Care will be working with LSCft to ensure that when it takes over in May 2021, it's as smooth and seamless a transfer as possible for patients and community service staff alike. This is about a change in who manages these services, not about direct care, so patients should not notice any difference to the community services they use, or to the staff who provide them on 1 May 2021.�"

Across the NHS, commissioners have contracts with organisations like Community Health Trusts and Hospitals, which set out standards for the services they provide. Commissioners also have a legal duty to carry out re-procurement exercises for these contracts from time to time. This importantly ensures that healthcare constantly meets expected levels of quality and that it continues to represent best value.

Joe Rafferty, Chief Executive of Mersey Care, said:- "We're delighted to have been awarded this contract and we believe we can build on the fantastic skills and expertise of colleagues from LSCft. We want to work together to achieve our ambition of providing world class care as close to home as possible. Mersey Care has a long tradition of community services in Sefton and Liverpool and I'm sure we can continue to provide high class care for everyone we serve during some of the most challenging times ever known within the NHS."

It announcement also means that from 1 May 2021 there will be a single provider of community Health Services across the whole of Sefton. Mersey Care currently provides these services for NHS South Sefton CCG.

Rob added:- "We know from speaking to residents that they want as much of their care provided as close to home as possible in the community so they only have to go to Hospital when they really to and for all the services they use to work better together. Our Sefton2gether strategy has been informed by these views and over time our new provider will be working towards this vision for future health and care, where services are more joined up and therefore more effective in meeting the needs of our patients."

You can also read more about Sefton2gether from the CCG's website:- SouthportAndFormbyCCG.NHS.UK.

Local fostering organisation is urging Southport residents to consider a career change into foster care

A local fostering organisation is calling for Southport residents to consider a career change as the Coronavirus Pandemic continues to negatively impact many industries across the UK, with unemployment rising to 4.8%.

The tier system could mean further job losses in the area, particularly in the hospitality industry and in retail, which has suffered a huge blow with the announcement that both the Arcadia Group and Debenhams have gone into administration, negatively impacting around 25,000 jobs across the UK.

With a number of redundancies at the Scarisbrick Hotel, Foster Careline; part of the Five Rivers social enterprise family; which has foster carers across the North West of England, is encouraging local residents to consider applying to foster a child or young person.

The number of children needing foster care in the UK has risen by 44% during the Coronavirus Pandemic. With more children and young people from Southport in need of a loving and safe home every day, fostering can provide the job stability and flexibility that many people are looking for in this time of uncertainty.

Despite the Covid19 Pandemic, the fostering application process is still ongoing and Foster Careline is keen to stress that new carers are still very much needed. There have been some changes made to the application process during the Coronavirus outbreak, such as speaking to applicants on the phone or via video call instead of visiting them to ensure as much can as possible be done remotely before the in person application begins.

Foster Careline is looking for individuals, couples and families from all backgrounds across Southport interested in foster care. There is a wide variety of roles within fostering, including:-

► Long term foster carers; Carers who can provide comfort and stability to children and young adults who are unable to live with their families. Depending on individual circumstances, children and young adults can remain with long term carers until at least the age of 18 or when they are able to live independently.

► Short term foster carers; This can apply to an overnight stay or a period of a few months and is used when children or young people require time away from their birth families or existing care support.

► Emergency foster carers; Emergency foster carers help bridge the gap between foster placements or reunification with friends, family or returning home.

► Sibling group foster carers; Foster Careline aims to keep all sibling groups together where possible, and is currently looking for more foster carers who have the space, time and resources available to be able to look after sibling groups.

► Parent and child fostering; Parent and child fostering involves fostering a new parent and their young baby to help develop and assess their parenting skills.

► Specialist fostering; If you have previous experience working with children with specific care requirements, be they special educational needs, medical needs or significant behavioural challenges, you could be perfectly suited to specialist fostering.

Commenting on the current need for foster carers across Southport, Pauline Fitzgerald, Fostering Service Manager for Foster Careline, said:- "We currently have a network of amazing foster carers across the North West of England, but we're looking for even more local people who have the potential to become great foster carers to support the rising number of youngsters in need. We'd like to encourage caring individuals, who may be facing redundancy or a change in their job situation because of the Coronavirus Pandemic, to consider how rewarding fostering a child or young person can be. Fostering offers flexible working, a competitive fostering allowance, the comfort of working from home and job security because of the constant demand for carers. There is no need for previous experience, and you may find that you have transferable skills from current or past employment that will be invaluable to you as a foster carer. We offer 24/7 support from qualified and experienced staff and a wide range of specialist training. We're eager to hear from people who are nurturing, compassionate and enjoy supporting others, as well as anyone who has questions about fostering and the variety of roles available."

People from all walks of life can be considered to become foster carers as long as they are over 21 years of age. This includes single people, co-habiting couples, same sex couples and people living in rented accommodation. You will need a spare room for each foster child.
For more information on Foster Careline, visit:- FosterCareLine.Com, call the enquiries team on:- 08005668337 or email:- Carer.Enquiries@FosterCareLine.Com.

Total UK cases Covid19 cases in and around Liverpool City Region

THE total number of UK Coronavirus (Covid19) infections that have been laboratory confirmed, within the UK, has risen by:- 34,693 cases and the total number now stand at:- 2,256,005 that includes tests carried out by commercial partners which are not included in the 4 National totals.

The total number of Covid19 associated UK fatalities added to the total, was sadly reported to be:- 210, within 28 days of positive test, according to the Department of Health. The total number of deaths of people who have had a positive test result confirmed by a Public Health or NHS laboratory is:- 70,405, within 28 days of positive test. Deaths with Covid19 on the death certificate:- 79,349

Hospital information has not been updated due to Christmas.

In England, there are a total of:- 1,937,598 confirmed cases. North West - total of:- 351,337 confirmed cases.

The number of laboratory confirmed cases within the Liverpool City Region are as follows:-

Area and number of confirmed cases:- Risen by:-

National UK Lockdown

Tier 2

Liverpool City Region

► Liverpool, 26,478 confirmed cases.
102

► Halton, 5,401 confirmed cases.
24

► Knowsley, 8,545 confirmed cases. 35

► Sefton, 11,599 confirmed cases.
41

► St. Helens, 8,573 confirmed case.
28

► Wirral, 11,373 confirmed cases.

63

Colour Key:- 0 1 to 10 11 to 20 21 to 30 31 to 40 41 to 50 51 to100 101 over

The number of laboratory confirmed cases within Local Authorities around the Liverpool City Region, since start of the Pandemic, are as follows:-

► Blackburn with Darwen, 11,145 confirmed cases.

► Blackpool, 6,037 confirmed cases.

► Bolton, 16,707 confirmed cases.

► Bury, 11,249 confirmed cases.

► Cheshire East, 11,216 confirmed cases.

► Cheshire West and Chester, 11,084 confirmed cases.

► Lancashire, 56,802 confirmed cases.

► Manchester, 34,812 confirmed cases.

► Oldham, 16,374 confirmed cases.

► Preston, 8,360 confirmed cases.

► Rochdale, 14,392 confirmed cases.

► Salford, 14,974 confirmed cases.

► Stockport, 12,006 confirmed cases.

► Tameside, 11,467 confirmed cases.

► Trafford, 9,984 confirmed cases.

► Warrington, 9,679 confirmed cases

► Wigan, 18,643 confirmed cases.

Daily reported Covid19 deaths are now measured across the UK as deaths that occurred within 28 days of the 1st laboratory confirmed positive Covid19 test. Daily and cumulative numbers of Covid19 patients admitted to Hospital. Data are not updated every day by all 4 nations and the figures are not comparable as Wales include suspected Covid19 patients while the other nations include only confirmed cases.

The latest R number is estimated at:- 1.1 to 1.3 with a daily infection growth rate range of:- +1% to +6%, as of 24 December 2020.