I managed to have some time away and some time off during August. I spent 10 days in Manchester visiting my daughter. With the new ways of working, I was able to join meetings remotely from ‘up north’. I did pop back for a couple of days to say goodbye to a dear friend. Steve Gear sadly passed away after a 10-month brave fight against cancer. Steve was an amazing and unique friend, who was well known in Anstey. There were over 200 people who attended his Celebration of Life service at Gilroes Cemetery, and he will be greatly missed by many. Rest in Peace Steve.
I was also fortunate to be able to have a week away (without the computers) in the beautiful Ellesmere. We took our two dogs and had a very relaxing week.
As we head into September, the regular meetings begin again, and we have some exciting times ahead of us.
Green Buses
New cleaner, greener buses – powered by 100% renewable energy – have been introduced to replace diesel vehicles on Leicester’s three park and ride routes: Meynell’s Gorse, Birstall and Enderby.
The fleet of 11 bright green electric buses have brought cleaner, greener travel to Leicester and Leicestershire and are now proudly bearing the names of the Leicester City football players who helped win the FA Cup for the city for the first time. People catching a bus into Leicester from the park and ride sites could find themselves travelling on a bus called Schmeichel, Vardy or even Tielemans. The players’ names and numbers are prominently displayed beneath the windscreen of each bus, making them easy for people to spot. The 11 buses are called:
- Schmeichel;
- 3 Fofana;
- 4 Söyüncü;
- 6 Evans;
- 8 Tielemans;
- 9 Vardy;
- 14 Iheanacho;
- 17 Ayoze;
- 25 Ndidi;
- 27 Castagne;
- 33 Thomas.
Leicester’s Park & Ride service costs just £3 return for a family/group ticket and is free for concessionary bus pass holders. The service is currently subsidised so that health workers can travel free of charge until further notice.
More information about Park & Ride in Leicester and Leicestershire can be found at: https://www.choosehowyoumove.co.uk/park-ride/greenlines/
Leicester Road, Anstey, Bus Stop
I have continued to work and ask for dates for when the work to relocate the bus stop on Leicester Road to Stadon Road will be completed. I have now been updated by officers at the county council, who advise me that the work will be completed within the next four months. As soon as I have the exact date, I will advise residents accordingly. The money for the relocation has been sitting with the Parish Council for over a year. This work was due to be carried out in 2020, but due to the pandemic, it was delayed.
As soon as the relocation of the bus stop has been completed, I will ask for a full review of The Nook following the alterations carried out a couple of years ago. We need to fully understand the current situation with the traffic flows and see if the alterations have delivered what they were meant to. I know we still see considerable queues on Cropston Road, Anstey, and this is made worse by the operations of Callington Ltd on Anstey Lane with the vast number of large vehicles using Cropston Road for access to their site.
Coronavirus
I have not given any recent updates recently regarding Covid-19 so thought I would share some useful information.
- Self- Isolation Rules
From Monday 16th August, there were changes to the self-isolation rules, including that people who are double-jabbed now no longer need to isolate if they are identified as a close contact of a positive Covid case. The government’s press release, with further details, can be found here:
- Mobile testing for those without symptoms
Three mobile test vans are continuing to move around the county at events and locations where footfall is expected to be high. At the van, people can get an on-site rapid flow test, or they can collect home test kits.
The locations of the test vans will be communicated on social media on a regular basis. If you do not have access to social media and would like to know where the vans are on a particular week, please get in touch with me.
- Vaccinations
It remains important to get yourself fully vaccinated, if you have not done so already, as the best possible protection for yourself and those around you so that we can all start to enjoy getting back to what we all enjoy.
Drop-in clinics are opportunities for you to call in to get vaccinated without making an appointment. There are more drop-in clinics that are set up across the county where you can receive your first or second dose (as long as first dose was at least eight weeks ago, and the clinic is offering the same vaccine). You can see the time and dates of the clinics here: https://bit.ly/GetVaxxedLLR
Find out other ways of getting the vaccine here: https://www.leicestercityccg.nhs.uk/my-health/coronavirus-advice/coronavirus-vaccine/
- How to get a rapid (lateral flow) COVID-19 test
A reminder that rapid lateral flow tests are available to all eligible people who don’t have symptoms. There are home test kits available to collect at most libraries, plus some leisure centres and community hubs. People are being reminded to self-report their rapid test results by calling 119 or going to gov.uk/report-covid19-result, whether their results are positive, negative or void.
To find out where you can collect home test kits, visit: https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/coronavirus-covid-19/regular-covid-testing-if-you-dont-have-symptoms
- Coronavirus data
The latest coronavirus case numbers for Leicestershire can be found here:
www.leicestershire.gov.uk/coronavirus-covid-19/Coronavirus-data-for-cases-in-Leicestershire
