I know as many of you watch the news you will be concerned about spikes in Covid-19 and while cases in Croydon remain low, they are increasing.
As your council we have stepped up our response and our public health team are working in close partnership with all our schools, health services and the voluntary sector to help all of our communities stay as safe as possible.
With the virus still circulating, we must remember that while for many Covid-19 is mild, for others it can be far more serious and for the vulnerable it can be deadly.
It is vital that we all play our part to keep everyone safe so please, follow the latest public health guidance to prevent the spread of infection and protect your friends and family.
This means:
- Remember the rule of six – don’t gather in groups of more than six
- Follow the advice on hands, face and space – keep washing your hands, wear a face covering and maintain your distance from others
- If you have any of the Covid-19 symptoms, you MUST self-isolate and get a test – book online at www.nhs.uk/coronavirus or call 119.
I know many of you have experienced problems booking tests on the government website – we continue to push government to increase local testing capacity and I’m pleased that our first Local Testing Centre opened in New Addington this week.
I also want to say thank you to everyone who has been doing all of the above and more to help to protect our borough – please, keep going and lets do this together.
Council finances
Covid-19 continues to have a huge impact not only on health but also on our council finances, leaving us unable to achieve the budget we agreed in March before the pandemic.
On Monday our cabinet will consider a paper on our in-year savings plan, which will set out immediate steps we need to take and also how we will ensure we are financially resilient in the future. The scale of the challenge means that we need to act now, make some tough choices and change the way we work and we will be asking government for financial support to give us the time and space to do this.
Our absolute priority is to protect vital services for our residents and we will want to hear from you as part of this process. If you want to get in touch and share your ideas for our future, email me at croydonplan@croydon.gov.uk.
Backing our businesses
We continue to work hard to support our local businesses and I would urge you to all do the same.
We can all make a difference by firstly following the public health advice, so that we reduce the risk of any local lockdowns which would have a disastrous impact on businesses who have already suffered many months of closure this year.
And secondly, keep supporting them by shopping local – we have so many fantastic businesses in our local high streets and we need to all get behind them.
As a council we are continuing to work closely with our regional and local partners to drive forward plans for Croydon’s economic renewal and we are pleased to welcome the incoming chair of London Councils Georgia Gould, to our board next week.
Despite our immediate pressures of the pandemic and its financial impact, we are still looking ahead and we are determined to keep our residents and businesses at the heart of plans to rebuild our economy.
Have a lovely weekend – stay safe, and shop local.
Yours,
Tony
Councillor Tony Newman, leader of the council
