Hartcliffe and Withywood Community Partnership who run a Community transport scheme for South Bristol are offering free transport to anyone who has mobility issues and needs to get to vaccination centre – in South Bristol these are at Knowle West Health Park and Ashton Gate.

They have so far taken 84 people. You don’t need to be a member and it is open to all ages.

Their phone number to arrange this is 0117 377 3451 or email them on thecattbus@hwcp.org.uk.

Rapid (lateral flow) testing is available to certain groups who do not have symptoms of COVID-19.  You can get regular testing if you: 

1. need to leave your home for work or volunteering,
2. are employed as a PA or Support Worker for a Disabled person,
3. live with a child or young person going to school, college or nursery, or are in a childcare bubble or support bubble with them,
4. live with someone who works in a school, college or nursery, or are in a childcare bubble or support bubble with them,
5. work in a school or in the wider school community, for example as a school bus driver or an after school club supervisor,
6. are a childminder or work in childcare.

For information on where to get regular on-site testing (those leaving home for work) or where to collect home test kits (all other groups mentioned above) visit the Council’s website.

If you do get symptoms of COVID-19, you and those you live with must self-isolate and you should book a test at: nhs.uk/coronavirus or by calling 119.

If you do get syptoms of COVID-19 but are unable to get to a test site, you can order a home test kit using the Government’s website or by calling 119.

The completed test kit can be returned at a priority postbox, but if this is not possible they can call 119 to arrange a courier collection and receive advice on the correct time to take the test. Those who are physically unable to use the test kit, and have no-one who can do it for them, should use the contact info provided for those who can’t get to a priority post box.

More information is available on the Government website here: COVID-19 home test: step-by-step guide (adults and children) – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Are you on a low income or self-employed?  

If so, you may be able to apply for a £500 grant if you have lost income because you have had to self-isolate because of having COVID-19.  You must be in low-paid employment or self-employment and unable to work from home.
 
You can now also apply for the grant if you are caring for a child who is self-isolating.
 
To get a Test and Trace Support Payment you must either:

Have been told to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace team or the COVID-19 app.

Be looking after a child under 16 years of age who usually attends an educational or childcare setting but is self-isolating on or after 8 March 2021.

Be looking after someone under 26 years of age with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) who usually attends a nursery, school, college or university but not going because they are self-isolating on or after 8 March 2021.

You must also be receiving one of the following:

Universal Credit,

Working Tax Credit,

income-based Employment and Support Allowance,

 income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance,

Income Support,

Housing Benefit, and/or Pension Credit.

If you don’t receive one of the benefits, you may still be able to get payments if you meet all other criteria.

Find out more about Test and Trace Support Payments on the council’s website.

Census officers visiting households

As of Monday 22 March, census officers are out visiting those households that did not respond to the national survey.  They will encourage you to complete the form and give you help if needed.
 
All field census officers will be carrying official identification cards.  The card will have a photograph and the officer’s name.  Officers will work in a socially distanced way; they will all be wearing PPE, will not enter anyone’s home and will not visit before 9am or after 8pm.

 
Anyone concerned that the person on their doorstep is not a census officer can call the number on the critical workers letter that the officer can show them.  You can also ring the contact centre for further advice on 0800 141 2021. 

For more information on how to complete the census go to www.census.gov.uk. 

Click on the PDF file above for an easy read version of the Roadmap Out of Lockdown from the Cabinet Office of the UK Government.

Climate charity Possible has launched its Car Free Cities campaign.

Car dominance is a problem and Possible want to help cities move to a zero-carbon Britain built by and for everyone. We need to keep the roads clear for those who need to drive, and safer for us all to use –  let’s reclaim our streets!

Their project aims to work with local communities to reimagine our neighbourhoods where car dependency is a thing of the past; and to co-design and deliver changes to local streets that take space away from cars and give it back to people and nature.  

Interested?  Then join our Community Climate Action project to ensure that the needs of Disabled people are included in any new plans for Bristol’s streets!

You can find out more about our Disabled people’s Community Climate Action project here: https://bristoldef.org.uk/community-climate-action/

You can find out more about the Possible campaign here: https://www.wearepossible.org/carfreecities

After government delayed all local elections for 12 months (due to COVID-19) this year we will be electing our local councillors, as well as Bristol’s Mayor, its Police and Crime Commissioner and the Mayor for the regional West of England Combined Authority (WECA), on 6May 2021.

If you want the right to have your say about who gets elected you must make sure you have completed your electoral registration form and sent it back.  If you haven’t you will need to register now. 

You can do this at: gov.uk/register-to-vote.

Postal Vote

In these uncertain times you may want to consider registering for a postal vote.  It has some advantages, especially during a pandemic.  Three of them are: it won’t matter what the lockdown restrictions are on 6 May, you won’t need to worry about any risk of catching COVID-19 and it saves waiting in line outside the polling station!   

You can register for a postal vote at bristol.gov.uk/voting-elections/postal-voting.
 
The deadline to register your right to vote is midnight on Monday 19 April.  The deadline to register for a postal vote is 5pm on Tuesday 20 April.

If you decide you want to go to vote in person, after you’ve registered for a postal vote, you can – as long as you’ve not already returned your postal ballot.  All you need to do it to ‘post’ it at your local polling station, by giving it to one of the officials in the polling station.

Simple. J

Last month, Jeremy Mathieu, the BBC’s Sustainability Advisor, delivered a Climate Storytelling Masterclass entitled ‘Re-thinking climate change communications for charities’ to Media Trust as part of their Weston Communicating Climate programme, in partnership with Garfield Weston Foundation.

This blog post includes the key takeaways – https://mediatrust.org/resource-hub/re-thinking-climate-change-communications-for-charities/ 

23 March 2021 marks one year since England went into a national lockdown.

The last twelve months have been so very difficult for all of us. We have faced challenges, and sadly, many of us have lost loved ones, opportunities, jobs, and many other things that are important to us.

Bristol City Council are launching a film called ‘Bristol Remembers‘ on Thursday, 18 March at 6pm.

The video is part of a a multi-agency project aimed at giving people a space to collectively reflect and remember those people and things we have lost throughout the pandemic. 

The video will feature contributions from across the city, including frontline workers, faith leaders, city leaders, Bristol’s City Poet, and musicians. A minute’s silence will also be observed.

Join Bristol City Council online and watch along virtually with your family and friends.

Watch it on the We Are Bristol website or on the Bristol City Council YouTube channel.

Please see below a flyer and text information from Bristol@Night through Bristol City Council about their EU Settlement Scheme. Any Disabled people who are on Direct Payments, or employ their own PAs and Support Workers using their own money, should check that their PAs and Support Workers are aware of this issue.

EU Settlement Scheme

Due to Brexit, EU citizens must apply for the EU Settlement Scheme if they want to continue living in the UK after June 2021. Even if they have lived in the UK most of their lives.

EU nationals who have lived continuously in the UK for five years or more should be entitled to settled status, meaning they are free to go on living in the UK indefinitely.

The Council are concerned people are not aware of the scheme or do not know that they need to apply. They want and need to make sure that the rights of EU citizens continue to be protected now Brexit has happened.

Please help us to get the message out. Talk about settled status to any person you know who is from a non-UK EU country, and please share this letter with your networks.

Are you an EU citizen?

Have you applied for the EUSS so you can remain legally in the UK past the 30th June?

The deadline to apply to the scheme is 30 June 2021

Employers can continue to confirm an EEA national’s right to work using only their passport or national ID card until 30 June 2021. From 1 July 2021, employers will no longer be able to accept an EEA or Swiss passport alone as evidence of a permanent right to work in the UK for new employees. Employers will need to see proof of immigration status which will be either under the EU Settlement Scheme or the new immigration system. Providers will also need to update recruitment policies.

Resources

Read more about the scheme and how to apply, including instructions in other languages, on our dedicated website: bristol.gov.uk/EUsettlement

Bristol Older People’s Forum (BOPF) would like to invite you along to their Meetup Mornings on Zoom.  This exciting new project has been set up to let BOPF members meet up and have a chat or discussion with new and old friends on a regular basis.  The content for each of the sessions will be decided by everyone that comes along, and they want it to be informal , relaxed and interesting.

About the BOPF Meetup Mornings 2021

The BOPF Meetup Mornings was launched at the BOPF Open Forum meeting on 25 February 2021, where initial ideas were explored.  

They would like the meetings to be uplifting, fun, interesting, informative and enjoyable, but with a bit of a structure.  Some topics of conversation that were suggested included: Days before the NHS, Places in Bristol and Foreign Cultures and Food…

There will be 13 Meetup Mornings during 2021 approximately every 3 weeks.  Your will find the dates here: https://bopf.org.uk/our-work/bopf-meet-up-mornings/. 

The first BOPF Meetup Morning will be on Thursday 18th March 2021, 10:30 – 12:00.

The meetings will be overseen by Ian Quaife, BOPF Development & Engagement Manager. 

Zoom Registration link

Thursday 18 March 2021

https://zoom.us/j/92937715929?pwd=QlBQQWsrOWtlcFlYV21ZMUpnWUlGdz09