Coronavirus messages from Surrey County Council - 6 April 2020:
Urgent appeal for Personal Protective Equipment
Surrey County Council is appealing to businesses for vital personal protective equipment (PPE) supplies to help protect frontline workers delivering essential services to Surrey residents during Covid-19.
As the nation faces unprecedented demand for PPE, there is a very limited supply coming into the county for social workers, care home staff, firefighters and volunteers, with understandably the NHS being prioritised.
Steve Owen Hughes, Chair of the Local Resilience Forum said, “We are short of items such as masks, hand sanitiser and gloves which are fundamental for the good care of individuals with suspected symptoms of Covid-19.
“We are hoping that businesses such as tattoo artists, beauty salons, nail bars and others that use these products daily can help us by offering stocks whilst they are closed. If you have any items from the specific list below, we would be very grateful for donations as soon as possible.”
The government issued new guidance on Friday 3rd April regarding infection prevention and control, including materials showing what PPE is required in different settings.
A message from the Surrey Domestic Abuse Partnership
The Surrey Domestic Abuse Partnership is aware that the measures that the government have taken to reduce the
spread of Covid-19 will put survivors of domestic abuse at further risk. Being unable to leave the home will make
accessing support even more difficult and being isolated at home with a perpetrator increases the risk of serious
harm or worse.
For this reason we are determined that all our services will remain open to support those who need us. We have
put contingency plans in place to enable to us to continue running our services and we are working with our
partners to develop new working practices and protocols to help us deal with the current crisis.
Our community outreach services are still open to referrals although this service will be delivered remotely and the
confidential Your Sanctuary DA Helpline and on-line chat service is available for anybody seeking information or
support. The refuge network both in Surrey and across England and Wales are working hard to keep women and
their children safe and can be accessed through the Your Sanctuary helpline.
The Government has issued guidance for people who are experiencing, or feel at risk of, domestic abuse.
Community recycling centres
Please note that all 15 of Surrey’s community recycling centres are now closed. Residents should check with their
district or borough council for the latest household collection updates and are asked to hold onto excess waste to
prevent the service from becoming overwhelmed.
Watch out for coronavirus scams
Trading standards is reporting that there are numerous different coronavirus scams circulating at the moment.
These include offering miracle cures for the virus and home testing kits that don’t exist. There have also been
reports of fraudulent text messages or emails which might be fining residents for going out, or offering refunds on
taxes or business rates.
Residents should remember to never invite people they don’t know into their homes, pay upfront for services or
offers of shopping, or give out bank details. Trading standards is advising to not be rushed into making a decision,
be skeptical, don’t be afraid to hang up, bin it, delete it or shut the door. For more advice visit the ‘stay connected’
page at surreycc.gov.uk/coronavirus
Three core messages
- Stay at home and save lives. It’s as simple as that – follow the government advice. Surrey County Council’s core mission in this is to ensure that we do everything we can to reduce the pressure on the NHS, protect our most vulnerable communities and support our staff and residents.
- We will get through this together, thanks to the hard work of our front line workers, and thanks to the
vigilance and shared responsibility of the British public.
Vulnerable people’s hub
- Those who really need help, who are unable to rely on family and friends should immediately call our
helpline on 0300 200 1008
- Online Forms: As part of our out of hours service we have an online ‘I Need Help’ form where people
can contact us through our website if they need help for themselves, or a family member living in
Surrey. This can be used to contact us when the Helpline is closed.
- The Surrey Local Resilience Forum is coordinating measures to support the 17,000 most vulnerable
in Surrey (who are receiving letters from the NHS).
- We are making sure we know who those are that really need help, and where they are in the County.
- We are coordinating both with government, and with districts and boroughs, and the first food parcels
are starting to go out to people