Council has teams on standby to support residents and businesses in a COVID- secure way as river levels set to peak
Minor flooding of riverside paths has occurred over night. (click)
Click for update
City of York Council has front line teams on standby to support residents and businesses as river levels are set to peak on Wednesday 4 November.
The council is working with the Environment Agency and will use the latest advice to identify peak levels and will communicate any potential impacts separately.
Letters are being sent to residents living in homes and properties which might be directly affected by high river levels, which provides advice and support as well as the measures being put in place.
The council is working closely with the York and North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, which includes police and fire services as well as North Yorkshire County Council, Met Office and Environment Agency.
View the latest river level predictions and warnings here.
Live web cam at Kings Staithe. Click image to update
Defences are being deployed today/tomorrow at Clementhorpe,Tower Street and Peckitt Street. Rowntree Park will also remain closed tomorrow after closing tonight.
Advice and support:
When there’s flooding in York, the council will provide assistance, practical support and information as soon as it’s safe and appropriate to do so – all in a COVID secure way. Sandbags: If your home/property is at immediate risk of flooding – then you don’t need to contact us. We’ll provide sandbags to communities based on the latest forecasted levels. Rest Centres: We have teams on standby to help provide and support should you need this. Rest centres have been redesigned to ensure they are managed in a COVID-safe environment.
Social care support:
If you know of someone who may be in need of social care and support contact our Adult Social Care Team, email: adult.socialsupport@york.gov.uk or telephone: 01904 555111 (or textphone: 07534 437804, for sensory impaired callers), between 8.30am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.
Emotional support:
The Major Incident Response Team have trained volunteers on hand to provide emotional support to those affected by incidents such as flooding. The team are here to help and you can contact them on mirt@york.gov.uk
The Environment Agency river forecasters will continue to monitor the situation 24/7 and provide further updates. Please keep an eye out for the latest information and alerts from the Environment Agency for updates on river levels in the city.
Drivers, pedestrians and cyclists should not enter or travel through flood water which has risks from hidden obstacles and health hazards.
There have been no additional deaths at either the York Hospital Trust or local care homes.
There were 58 (FIFTY EIGHT) additional test results announced today.
Case number trend still downward but may be levelling.
15 out of 24 neighbourhoods now below national average infection rate levels.
What can stay open from Thursday
The Government has published a list of what can stay open from Thursday in England.
Schools, universities, colleges
Child care facilities
Courts
Food retailers, including food markets, supermarkets, convenience stores and corner shops.
Takeaways
Off licenses and licensed shops selling alcohol (including breweries).
Pharmacies (including non-dispensing pharmacies) and chemists.
Newsagents.
Hardware stores.
Building merchants, and building services.
Petrol stations.
Car repair and MOT services.
Bicycle shops.
Taxi or vehicle hire businesses.
Banks;
Building societies;
Credit unions;
Short term loan providers;
Savings clubs;
Cash points;
Currency exchange offices
Post offices.
Funeral directors.
Laundrettes and dry cleaners.
Dental services, opticians, audiology services, chiropody, chiropractors, osteopaths and other medical or health services, including services relating to mental health.
Veterinary surgeons and pet shops.
Agricultural supplies shop.
Storage and distribution facilities, including delivery drop off or collection points, where the facilities are in the premises of a business which is allowed to stay open to customers.
Car parks.
Public toilets.
Garden centres.
Recycling centre
It will be up to individual businesses to decide whether to remain open.
Live Q&A to discuss resident’s questions about the public health response
The next York Council live Coronavirus Q&A on the council’s Facebook page takes place today (Tuesday 3 November) at 5-6pm.
The panel will be discussing your questions and comments about the city’s response to Coronavirus.
This next question and answer session will discuss your questions, with a special focus on the latest national restrictions and the support that is on offer for businesses across the city.
Residents are invited to watch live on Facebook to hear from: • Cllr Darryl Smalley, Executive Member for Culture, Leisure & Communities • Cllr Andrew Waller, Executive Member for Economy and Strategic Planning • Sharon Stoltz, Director of Public Health, City of York Council • York COVID data, Testing, Outbreak Management • Neil Ferris, Corporate Director Economy and Place • Carolyn Frank, Development Manager, North Yorkshire Federation of Small Businesses
How can I get involved? Residents can interact with the session by either submitting questions in advance by emailing them to YourQuestions@york.gov.uk or commenting on the live video on Facebook where leaders will read out questions and respond.* Questions may be answered by theme rather than individually, so that the conversation covers as many topics as possible.
For the latest York updates on service changes, online support and how you can get involved in supporting your community visit www.york.gov.uk/Coronavirus
*Please note: Resident do not need a Facebook account to watch the live video however, they will need their own Facebook account to comment on the video with their questions (alternatively questions can be emailed toYourQuestions@york.gov.uk).
ONE additional death at the York Hospital Trust was announced today. It occurred on Tuesday.
There were 52 (FIFTY TWO) additional positive test results announced today. That is the smallest increase for 2 weeks. The total number of cases is now 3589
By Sunday the rate per 100k population had fallen to 257.35. That is the smallest rate since 7th October.
Overall the number of cases in the City is now falling with more neighbourhoods now below national infection levels.
There maybe some cautious room for optimism
Those hoping for a return to Tier 1 status may have to wait for a while. York still has the highest infection rate in North Yorkshire albeit it is falling while some other areas are seeing an increase.
Around 1000 tests are being carried out each day in York. Positivity rates are steady at around 1 in 5.
The authorities are now publishing details of the age groups of York people testing positive for COVID. The highest number of cases continues to be concentrated in the 10 – 29 age range.
North Yorkshire Police’s crime reporting shows a level of consistency in crimes recorded year on year, although there are a number of notable changes through the months of March to June 2020.
Burglary, theft, vehicle crime and criminal damage a marked decrease which can be attributed to the national lockdown imposed on 23 March. Whilst violent crime showed a minor increase year on year thought to be a result of a change in reporting – this also experienced a decrease through the months of April and May, another change likely to be as a result of the lockdown.
In line with this, the number of sexual crimes recorded have decreased but reporting rates have not fallen at the same pace which positively indicates that victims still have the confidence to come forward and report incidents.
Levels of reported domestic abuse have continued to rise year on year, an increase which can partly be attributed to the requirement to record multiple crimes where stalking and/or harassment has occurred, rather than simply one crime per incident. Partner agencies, charities and other organisations which support domestic abuse victims have reported a rise in demand for their services over the last few months and Detective Superintendent, Allan Harder, explains more:
“Whilst we were hearing of this increased demand from our partners and in the national media, the number of domestic abuse incidents reported to North Yorkshire Police has remained level. Although victims have been seeking additional support, this is not associated with a significant rise in reported incidents.
“That said there was clearly a need for information and advice to be shared as widely as possible so along with our partners we have been working hard to address this. As well as signposting victims to the wealth of support available, we have created videos discussing a range of topics and continue to send a strong message that the police are very much still here to help and do whatever we can to safeguard anyone experiencing domestic abuse.”
Incidents of fraud recorded have continued to rise over the last three years, an increase which can be attributed to both changes in the way it is reported and work to address the fact it is one of the most underreported crimes. Head of North Yorkshire Police Economic Crime Unit, Detective Inspector Jon Hodgeon explains:
“Victims often do not report fraud as they may feel embarrassed to have been scammed or may think there’s no chance of getting back money they have lost but even if there are no lines of enquiry, we want to help ensure that individual does not become a victim again. To be able to provide victims support and prevention advice, we encourage victims to report fraud directly to North Yorkshire Police, rather than Action Fraud, so we can provide this support and prevention advice.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has put a stop to our regular face-to-face fraud prevention presentations and workshops so we’ve had to find new ways to reach people with prevention messages, including regular Facebook Live sessions and other virtual events which have been very well-received. We’ve also seen a number of new scams emerge with the pandemic providing the perfect cover for many fraudsters and old scams coming back into the fore so we’ve worked hard to keep North Yorkshire residents as up to date as possible.”
North Yorkshire Police Assistant Chief Constable, Mark Pannone, said:
“It is clear to see the impact of Covid-19 and the national lockdown on these latest figures and whilst this has meant some reduction in crime, we must not be complacent. We may be seeing less of some types of crime but we know the need for community support and helping individuals to feel safe is more important than ever before.
“We have moved some of our prevention and safeguarding support to online channels and I can reassure our communities that we are still very much here for you. We know this is a really difficult time for our communities and we are adapting to the challenges presented by the pande
Contrary to claims made on social media a few months ago, a response to a Freedom of Information request has revealed that no road safety audits were completed on The Groves road layout changes before they were introduced in the summer.
Safety audits area mandatory for changes to highway layouts. Their purpose can be viewed by clickingthis link
It is without precedent in York, for a scheme of this size to be implemented without the Stage 1, 2 and 3 audits being completed.
It is of no relevance that the scheme may have been labelled as “experimental” by Council officials.
It appears that a Stage 3 (post construction) audit will be undertaken when changes to the layout have been completed. It is unclear when this will happen and what changes may be planned*.
The revelation is the most serious of several concerns highlighted by the Councils refusal to respond fully to the request for information. In due course, this may be explored further with the Information Commissioner, but the safety aspect (including the controversial unsegregated contraflow cycle lanes) may require action from Grant Shapps the Transport Minister who has been scathing about the quality of some “emergency” traffic changes introduced post COVID. The Groves scheme was funded from the governments “emergency transport budget”
Unsegregated contraflow cycle lanes on narrow road have been heavily criticised
The Groves scheme was designed in late 2019 and so preceded the start of the pandemic.
The response also raises the question of just what the scheme was intended to achieve?
Most commentators have pointed to improvements in air quality. However, air quality across the whole highway network in York has been good since the start of February and the Council has been unable to produce any figures suggesting that The Groves is any different in that respect.
Some said that there would be fewer collisions. Accident data – mostly pre lockdown – reveals that there were no severe accidents in The Groves area and that there were no accidents at all involving children. The severe collisions that were recorded happened on the alternative route for traffic (Clarence Street, Lord Mayors Walk, Monkgate) with most at the road junctions which are still open to traffic. Thus, the scheme may actually have increased risks on the network as a whole.
The Council has refused to reveal the pre and post implementation traffic levels in the area. There is absolutely no reason why the 2019 base figures should not be in the public domain. The Council instead promise to include the figures as part of a public review of the scheme during the first quarter of 2021.
With traffic levels currently running at about 80% of pre COVID levels, we are not expecting to see a significant impact on congestion levels on alternative routes.
The removal of “through traffic” from The Groves will offer residents who live there a quieter lifestyle. Whether it is safer or less polluted may now be open to question.
The type of closure chosen and its impact on emergency services, deliveries and local businesses has been subject to criticism
There is no good reason for the York Council to be so secretive about the scheme and it is downright irresponsible to include elements which increase hazards for road users without undertaking, transparent, risk assessments.
Recent accidents in The Groves area. May not include most recent incidents.
The Council has now published the changes it is making. They are;
a. Change the position of the road closure on St. John’s Crescent, to relocate it at the junction with Garden Street. Removable bollards will be installed for part of the closure to provide a secondary emergency access route to streets off Garden Street/St John Street;
b. Remove 2.4m of on street parking on St John Street (both side) near the junction with Garden Street to facilitate turning movements at the junction;
c. Change the position of the road closure in place at the junction between Neville Terrace, Park Grove and Brownlow Street, to address issues with some drivers using the alleyways between Neville Terrace, Eldon Terrace and Amber Street to bypass the closures;
d. Remove the parking bay adjacent to 25 Neville Terrace to facilitate access and egress for larger vehicles, including emergency vehicles.
2. Approve a Temporary Traffic Regulation Order (TTRO) to waive Pay & Display charges for parking areas near the shops on Lowther Street and adjacent to the local shop on Townend Street (between Abbot Street and Del Pyke) for a duration of 6 months.
Changes published by York Council on 20th October 2020
In May, a media report confirmed that the GLL group – who manage several leisure facilities in York including Energise on Cornlands Road and the Yearsley swimming pool – were in financial difficulty.
Energise on Cornlands Road
They asked the York Council for support.
The move may partly explain why more progress has not been made in bringing new facilities at the York Community stadium site into use.
The York City Council said it “will continue to work closely with GLL.”
At the time, Ian Floyd, the council’s interim head of paid services, said: “Throughout the city’s response to coronavirus we understand that the businesses we work with have had to adapt due to temporary closures, working differently and dealing with the financial demands this places on them.
“We are working with our partners across the city to ensure we support them to work safely, and we continue to follow government guidance regarding our ongoing service contracts.
“City of York Council supports GLL through our leisure services contract via monthly payments. This is usually paid in arrears. Following government guidance, the council have paid three months of the contract fee upfront, covering April to June 2020.
“We understand that GLL have furloughed the majority of staff at these venues and have confirmed they are continuing to pay 100% of their salaries until May. City of York Council will continue to work closely with GLL, to work through the contract implications of the Coronavirus response which closed all public leisure facilities in March.”
There has been no recent update from the Council although some facilities did subsequently reopen on a limited basis.
We have made no secret on our distaste for the “mayoral” style of local government systems. They put enormous amounts of power in the hands of one person. That looked wrong even in at best of times.
Now the governments apparent determination to move ahead quickly with another reorganisation of Local Government in York and North Yorkshire, in the middle of a pandemic, looks to be at the extreme end of irresponsible.
Local government Leaders should be able to devote all of their energises and resources to addressing the health crisis.
Some already look exhausted by the pressures of the crisis.
Reorganisation is an unnecessary distraction which the government should shelve at least until the pandemic, and the outfall from BREXIT, are behind us.
Against that background the York Council and North Yorkshire County Council have prepared a policy proposal which would see the City’s boundaries left as they are. York would still have a – ceremonial – Lord Mayor and local electors would get what they voted for (rather than what their counterparts in Scarborough thought that they should have).
“Council confirms there is no functional, historical or logical reason for merging York
Devolution for York and North Yorkshire and Unitarisation for North Yorkshire
structures and so, unlock the devolution process, City of York Council today (16 October) proposed there is no functional, historical or logical reason to merge York with surrounding rural and coastal areas.
In a report to the Executive, it is proposed that York’s footprint should remain the same, to retain local decision making in York, focus on recovery efforts, avoid significant disruption and cost, and continue to deliver value for money services to residents, businesses and communities.
If agreed, Executive will refer to Full Council on 29 October to decide whether to provide a submission to government that demonstrates York should remain on the existing footprint by providing evidence that there is no functional, historical or logical reason to merge York with other local authorities.
To reduce the 2-tier county and district structures in North Yorkshire, there are only two options being put forward. The first, the council’s preferred option, would mean York remains on its existing footprint and North Yorkshire creates a new single council, serving the whole of North Yorkshire and based on its recognised geography and identity. This would bring together the eight councils currently providing public services there. The second, proposed by the district authorities, is an east/west split that would see York merge with Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby, covering a geography that would stretch 65 miles north/south, and 45 miles east/west.
To achieve greater efficiencies between City of York Council and North Yorkshire County Council, a Strategic Partnership agreement has been created, which describes how seizing opportunities to share resources or lead different aspects of service delivery, whilst respecting the differences between the two places, will better support the region.
There are several benefits of York remaining as a unitary on its existing footprint:
The speed at which devolution maybe achieved
The continuity of services at a time critical for Covid recovery
The continued identify of the City
However, should any change be made to City of York’s existing footprint, there will be a series of detrimental impacts, including
an anticipated £117 increase for Band D taxpayers in York (representing an 8% increase).
disruption to services across York and the districts during this crucial recovery period
end of the 800 year connection between the city and the council, impacting on the very identity of the city.
Over the past few months, consultation has taken place with local residents, businesses and communities regarding devolution and unitarisation, which has been used to feed into the analysis of proposals included in the report. As part of Our Big Conversation, residents have been sending their views on the topic, with 65% of residents believing council services won’t be improved by covering a larger area. As part of the consultation, the Council has also held two devolution focused Facebook Live Q&A’s, and has set up numerous briefing sessions with local businesses, charitable and voluntary groups, and local civic organisations.
The council has not been consulted on the east/west proposal and therefore does not know the detail. As a result it is not possible to accurately assess the impact.
York has a strong case for remaining the same:
t is a median-sized unitary authority with the 7th lowest level of council tax of any unitary.
It’s geography (compact urban and sub-urban) is distinctly different to it’s surrounding area (rural and coastal)
It has maintained financial stability since it was formed in 1996.
It supports a successful, sustainable city, recognised as one of the best places to live in the UK, with world renowned universities and an education system amongst the best in the country.
York responds to the criteria set by central government
To support Executive make an informed decision, the council has summarised evidence for its case to continue on its existing footprint against the criteria provided by government”.
Another death reported today at York hospital. This is the second in a week.
At the end of September there were 18 COVID patients being looked after by the Hospital Trust. The NHS do not published daily bulletins giving bed occupancy and discharge numbers at local authority level. We think that – – given the huge surge in local case numbers – they should now do so.
73 (SEVENTY THREE) additional positive test results have been announced today. This brings the total to 1838.
The cumulative 7 day average number of cases, per 100,000 population, peaked at 203.69 on Tuesday. This is significantly higher than the national average.
The worst affected neighbourhoods are currently Heslington, the City centre, the Groves and Tang Hall. All have large numbers of student occupied properties.
According to media reports, 135 people from the University of York have tested positive for Covid-19.
The number of students self-isolating has hit 1,000.
Volunteers are being recruited to help deliver food to the students stuck in uni accommodation. City of York Council has sent out an email to its team of volunteers asking for their help. It says: “The quantity of Covid-19 positive tests at the University of York has doubled. There are 1,000 students on campus socially isolating and the University of York needs support to ensure they can deliver food to them.”
Stricter rules for businesses
We know of, and are incredibly grateful for, the amount of work businesses are undertaking to ensure their premises are COVID secure for staff and customers.
The new measures from the government brought in this week also brought in increased punishment for businesses who aren’t COVID secure.
Businesses and organisations will face stricter rules to make their premises COVID Secure (from 28 September):
A wider range of leisure and entertainment venues, services provided in community centres, and close contact services will be subject to the COVID-19 Secure requirements in law and fines of up to £10,000 for repeated breaches.Employers must not knowingly require or encourage someone who is being required to self-isolate to come to work.Businesses must remind people to wear face coverings where mandated.
New guidance on £9 billion Job Retention Bonus
Further information has been published on how businesses can claim the government’s Job Retention Bonus, with millions set to benefit from the £9 billion package.
the Job Retention Bonus, worth up to £9 billion is set to support millions of employers who have kept on furloughed workersthe bonus will work alongside newly announced Job Support Scheme and could be worth more than 60% of average wages of workers who have been furloughed – and are kept on until the start of February 2021businesses can claim for the Bonus from 15 February until the end of March.
Eligible employees who are required to self-isolate by the Government’s Test and Track scheme, will be eligible for one-off payments to support them through the 14-day quarantine period.
The new Test and Trace Support Payment scheme from the Government is for people on low incomes who are unable to work from home while they are self-isolating. Where earnings are affected by self-isolating, applicants may be entitled to some financial support; a one-off ‘Test and Trace Support Payment’ of £500. Anyone told to self-isolate by the NHS’s scheme must do so or face fines of up to £10,000, and the £500 payment must be returned.
The scheme will also apply to eligible self-employed people who can prove they are unable to work while self-isolating.
Information on how to apply for a self-isolation support payment from 9 October is at www.york.gov.uk/selfisolate
Applications for free peer-to-peer support programme are now open
Peer Networks is a free national peer-to-peer programme for SME leaders that want to grow and develop their organisation for future success.
The York & North Yorkshire Growth Hub are working in partnership with the University of York to create diverse groups of individuals who can collaboratively work through common business issues. Through interactive action learning, participants will be able to discuss their challenges, gain and reflect on valuable feedback, and implement practical solutions to overcome them.
To be eligible, businesses need to have operated for over a year, have five or more employees and an annual turnover of at least £100,000. The scheme will close to applications on 26 October 2020 and places are limited.
Prime Minister’s Announcement: Skills and Training
The Prime Minister has set out plans to transform the training and skills system to help the country recover from coronavirus. The plans include a Lifetime Skills Guarantee to give adults the chance to take free college courses valued by employers and new entitlement to flexible loans to allow courses to be taken in segments, boosting opportunities to retrain.
This included an expansion of the Department for Education’s online learning platform, The Skills Toolkit. There are now more than 70 courses in digital, numeracy and employability or work-readiness available online and free of charge.
We are encouraging more learners to sign up to The Skills Toolkit, in order to help them build up their skills, progress in work and boost their job prospects.
As cases of Coronavirus continue to increase, City of York Council are encouraging residents and businesses to play their part to protect those we love and keep the places we enjoy open.
Stay up to date with York’s response to coronavirus through our upcoming Live Q&As, daily social media and latest government guidance updates.
As many volunteers have returned to work or education, we’re looking for 300 more to support York. We get a wide range of requests for volunteers to help with across the city.Sign up to volunteer so we can match you with suitable requests or needs.
Having friends or family to visit?
We’re asking residents to share their top tips for stopping the spread of Coronavirus when visitors come round. Whether it’s buying or making a fire pit so you can socialise outdoors, or putting kitchen roll in the bathroom so no one shares a hand towel – let us know how you keep people safe.
Current data shows us that social and household contacts and lack of social distancing is the main cause of spreading Coronavirus in York. It’s vital we don’t forget these stay-safe steps when visitors come to your home. Let’s protect those we love and remember ‘Hands, Face, Space’ whether you’re out and about or have visitors to your home.
You can download our Let’s be safe posters and share the helpful reminder of ‘Hands, Face, Space’ in your neighbourhood from the council website.
Going out to eat or drink?
Following Government guidance, hospitality businesses are now required to:
Close at 10pm (not last orders)
Keep tables a safe distance apart or divided with protective screens
Refuse entry to groups of more than six
Require customer and staff to wear face covering, unless sat at their table
Either ask customers to scan the NHS QR code in their premises or record their contact details for the Track and Trace programme
Businesses in York have innovated and adapted to remain safe and welcoming for residents and visitors, but the threat of Coronavirus has not gone away and so we all need to continue to work together to protect our health, our economy and our city.
There have been EIGHT additional positive test results announced today bringing the cumulative total number of cases to 1254
There have been no additional hospital deaths
Worst affected neighbourhoods over the last 7 days have been Strensall, Bishopthorpe/Copmanthorpe and Rawcliffe/Clifton South
Picture is slightly better today but it is too soon to say whether the slowing in the rate of new cases identified will be sustained.
Council seeks more funding
With the Council continuing to face significant financial challenges posed by the Coronavirus pandemic, the council has submitted its submission to the Chancellor’s Comprehensive Spending Review.
The submission urges the Government to ‘Back York’ by seizing the opportunities that are unique to the city and drive recovery in the region.
As part of the submission to the Spending Review, the Council has called on the Government to provide additional funding for York, as part of the levelling-up agenda, as well as urge the Government to continue to work with the Council to relocate a Government department to York.
Since the pandemic was declared, City of York Council has prioritised resources to support the most vulnerable in the city, as well as additionally investing over £2 million to create local emergency funds to support the city’s businesses and residents facing financial hardship. However, whilst demand for services has increased, income has considerably fallen, leaving the Council, alongside other local authorities, with an estimated potential budget gap that could be as much as £20 million.
It is clear that to kick-start the economic recovery of the region, there are opportunities unique to York to build back better. However, with significant financial challenges in Local Government, the Council cannot unlock these opportunities alone. With additional funding, City of York Council could:
Make £25 million available to further support local businesses in adapting to the crisis;
Enhance York’s world-renowned culture and heritage by making extra funding available to support local museums, libraries and more – in particular, providing urgent financial support to charitable services who have seen visitor income streams significantly reduced;
Scale up the support on offer to residents facing financial hardship, particularly through the use of the York Financial Assistance Scheme;
Provide much needed funding for small charities and voluntary sector; organisations who do not have the resources to fundraise themselves;
Speed up the delivery of critical regeneration projects and citywide infrastructure schemes, from York Central, to the dualling of York Outer Ring Road;
Provide certainty of funding within the Adult Social Care sector, which has been under considerable pressure before the pandemic began;
Improve support for York’s climate change ambitions (ranging across service areas), so that York continues to be a leader in climate action.
This submission sits alongside other submissions from organisations representing the wider region and local government, including from Yorkshire and the Humber local authorities, the Convention of the North, Transport for the North and the national Local Government Association (LGA).
A report on the Castle Gateway regeneration project published today says that the scheme should go ahead but it says, “there are no plans to close Castle Car Park until suitable replacement parking is available”.
Castle car park has been very busy in rent months
However, the construction of a multi-story alternative on the St George site will be shelved.
The Council’s Executive are being recommended to agree to the “recommencement of the paused procurement of a construction contractor to undertake the design and subsequent construction of the proposed apartments, pedestrian/cycle bridge and riverside park at Castle Mills”
They’re also being asked to approve the design and submission of planning applications for a “high quality public realm scheme on Castle Car Park and Eye of York” while a decision on the future of the site at 17-21 Piccadilly – currently the home of the Spark container village – will be delayed until next summer.
“Spark York who have resolved their outstanding planning issues and have a lease until early 2022″.
York Council report 24th Sept 2020
The immediate additional financial commitment for the Council will be £1.5 million. In total the project cost – which was to be funded by borrowing – was £46 million. This would generate additional interest payments of around £1 million per year which would have to come out of what is now an overcommitted revenue budget.
In effect, there will be further cuts in public service standards across the City.
It was hoped that the borrowing would be paid off through the sale of flats which would be built on the former Castle Mills car park site. However, there was still a funding deficit of £4.7 million and no resources were allocated for turning the Castle car park into “a world class open space”.
The Castle car park provides over £1 million a year in income for the Council.
The Council has already spent £2.2 million on consultation and design activities for the project.
In a separate report the Council has been warned about the risks to local public services
The report fails to put the scheme costs into the context of the overall Council capital and revenue budget position.
An oddly detached from reality section of the report claims that the “Castle Gateway masterplan is a “significant opportunity to drive the city’s response to Covid-19 due to the:
Focus on sustainable transport to create new key pedestrian and cycle routes
Reduction of vehicle journeys inside the inner ring road through the closure of Castle car park
Creation of significant new public realm
Enhanced cultural and heritage offer and the creation of a new major event space – building on the city’s unique selling points and expanding the capacity to attract responsible tourism to support the city’s economy
Regeneration and investment in rundown parts of the city Development of new city centre homes, including new affordable and council housing
Capacity to reinvigorate the economy by supporting jobs in the construction sector”
So we have the Benito Mussolini solution to unemployment emerging. Borrowing to fund massive public works contracts which – in the case of the bridge and park – will have no short-term economic benefits (other than perhaps for a handful of the green socialist, city centre dwelling, elite).
Businesses dependent on those who choose to use, because of the health crisis, personal transport when they visit the City, will lose out.
Spark queue & Peel Street car park full
We need to be careful with our commentary.
“El Duce” gained a reputation for having errant stationmasters shot if trains didn’t run on time.
The lowest risk part of the scheme maybe the construction of the blocks of flats. Maybe that could continue, even though rising unemployment, and reducing business rate income, could compromise the Council’s ability to service the planned borrowing.
On balance, the Council really should decide to pause the project for 18 months and review it when the health crisis is over.
Unfortunately we have seen 2 further care home deaths over the last few days. These were the first fatalities from Coronavirus in the City for several months.
There were no more hospital deaths in York but elsewhere in Yorkshire the number of fatalities has increased.
TWELVE additional positive test results were reported today bringing the total number of cases to 1147. NB. This cumulative figure has been amended by the government to exclude the first York (and British) case which was reported in January.
The worst affected neighbourhoods in York over the last 7 days have been Huntington, Fulford Rd/Clementhorpe & Wigginton.
New restrictions announced by government
Office workers should work from home again where possible – although those in “key public services and in all professions” where this is not possible, such as construction and retail, should continue to go in. Mr Johnson later said that people should keep going in if it is important for their job, mental health or wellbeing
From Thursday, all pubs, bars and restaurants must offer table service only and close at 10pm – but delivery services can remain open
The requirement to wear a face covering has been extended to staff in retail, people in taxis and everyone using hospitality services
Fines for not wearing a face covering will now double to £200 for a first offence
COVID-secure guidelines will become a legal obligation for retail, leisure and tourism firms, with those who do not comply running the risk of fines of £10,000 or closure
Only 15 people can now attend weddings, but 30 can still go to a funeral
The “rule of six” has been extended to indoor sports teams, such as five-a-side football games
The phased reopening of stadiums for sporting events from 1 October has been scrapped
All about QR codes
A new ‘QR code system’ for Test and Trace is set to be launched on Thursday, the government has confirmed.
From September 24, businesses must register for an official ‘NHS QR code’ and display the official ‘NHS QR code poster’ in a prominent position in their venue.
Visitors to pubs and restaurants will be asked to scan the pub or restaurant’s specific QR code on their mobile or tablet, in order to ‘check in’ to a venue and share their information – instead of writing their contact information on a form or giving their name and phone number to a member of staff.
Alternatively, people can download the “NHS COVID-19 app” which also allows users to ‘check in’ to venues – and receive official messages if there is a coronavirus outbreak at a venue they have visited.
What is a “QR” code?
QR in ‘QR code’ stands for “Quick Response”.
A QR code is a square-shaped Barcode-like image, that is machine-readable and can be scanned on mobile phones and tablets.
Typically, the person who scans a QR code is sent a ‘notification’ (hyperlink) to their phone or tablet inviting them to visit a website, for example to get more information about something mentioned on a poster, form or billboard.
For “Track and Trace,” the QR code will be used so people can give their contact information for the ‘Track and Trace’ government initiative, securely and efficiently.
QR code scanner
How do I scan a QR code?
Whether you have an iPhone, an Android phone or a different device, e.g. an iPad or other tablet, scanning a QR code is simple.
You do not usually need a separate app – you can just use the camera on your phone or other device.
Open your camera on your device, hold it in front of the QR code as if you are going to take a photo, and just hold your phone still for a few seconds.
Your phone should scan the code and a little ‘notification’ box should appear.
Click on this box to be taken to a page to enter and confirm your details.
If this does not work, check you have clicked ‘enable QR code scanning’ in your phone/device settings.
Alternatively, if you have ‘SnapChat’, you should be able to scan the QR code through that, or you can download a QR scanner/code-reader from your phone or device’s app store.
How will the QR code system work?
According to the government, the QR code system will help NHS Test and Trace let people know if they have been exposed to Coronavirus.
People will scan the code on their smart-phone or other device when they are at a pub, restaurant or other similar business, and be asked to input their information for ‘Track and Trace’.
Alternatively, people can use the NHS COVID-19 appand QR code to ‘check in’ to a site.
An update on the government’s website says: “By maintaining records of staff, customers and visitors, and displaying an official NHS QR poster, [businesses] will help NHS Test and Trace to identify and notify people who may have been exposed to the virus.
“The NHS COVID-19 app has a feature that allows users to quickly and easily ‘check in’ to [a] venue by scanning the code. The information stays on the user’s phone.
“In England, [businesses] do not have to ask people who choose to ‘check in’ using the official NHS QR code to provide their contact details. If there is an outbreak associated with a venue, a message will be sent to the relevant app users with the necessary public health advice.”Fill in our short survey to let us know what you think about the latest Covid restrictions. https://data.reachplc.com/202573612855861
When should I scan the code?
You should scan the code when you are given/pointed to it, this may be when you enter a venue or when you place an order.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “Businesses should collect this [Track and Trace] information in a way that is manageable for their establishment.
“If not collected in advance, this information should be collected at the point that visitors enter the premises, or at the point of service if impractical to do so at the entrance.”
What happens if you do not have a smart-phone?
If you don’t have a smart-phone or other device that scans QR codes – don’t panic.
While it is mandatory that every business has a QR code for people to scan, the ‘paper record’ system will be permitted – providing it is kept out of public sight.
