Newsletter ¦ 30th July 2021

I hope you and your loved ones are well. I hope you are staying warm and dry from the extreme weather conditions we are experiencing.

Last week, I was worrying about keeping the cafe open if all my staff got “pinged” and whether we could get enough food in due to a shortage of lorry drivers. We survived these issues but were caught off-guard by the torrential rain on Tuesday, which caused our cafe ceiling to collapse. After ten minutes of rain, the cafe had turned into a paddling pool for the ducks. Thank you to our wonderful team of staff & volunteers who grabbed sweeping brushes to fight off the water and to Andrew who got to the root, or the roof, of the problem. The cafe has remained open but it is relocated to the hall until we have got rid of the dampness!

I hope you find our newsletter useful - happy reading!

Part One: Coronavirus in Bury

On Thursday 29th July, 365.5 people per 100,000 tested positive for coronavirus over the last 7 days – that is a decrease of 45% from the previous week. On the same day, the England average was 351.4 people testing positive per 100,000 over the last seven days– a decrease of 35% from the previous week’s figure.This is excellent news after weeks of rising figures.

However, the impact of "freedom day" may not be felt for another few weeks yet, and the Prime Minister has warned against drawing "premature conclusions" from these figures.

Whilst current research shows that the vaccines against Covid 19 are highly effective in reducing infections, symptoms, hospitalisations and deaths, the caveat is that vaccines do not make you invincible. You are certainly a lot safer after having had two jabs but it is still worth your while to reduce your personal exposure to virus by social distancing, wearing a facemask and sanitising your hands.

Vaccinations

As of 25 July 2021, a total of 129,210 first doses and 105,756 second doses of the vaccine have been delivered from Bury's community vaccination centres, hospital hubs and regional vaccination centres.

In Bury, residents in Summerseat are leading the way with vaccinations. 90.9% adults have received their first dose and 82.3% of adults in that area are now fully vaccinated.

The Bury Council website has an update of all the clinics offering the vaccination.at https://www.bury.gov.uk/coronavirus-vaccine

Alternatively, go to the Bury Covid 19 Vaccination booking service at https://covid.nhsbookings.com/gmpcn

For details on testing for Coronavirus, go to https://www.bury.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=15451

Part Two: Our services

Any of our services may have to close at a moment’s notice should one or more of our staff have to self-isolate. We will advertise any changes via Facebook and Twitter.

The Jubilee Centre Cafe

Our café is open next week from 10 to 2.30, Monday to Friday.

In our cafe, we ask that all customers respect social distancing rules and wear a facemask when moving around. Our staff and volunteers will be doing likewise. Table service will continue until we feel it is safe to reintroduce counter service. As a temporary measure, the cafe will extend into the main hall, allowing us to accommodate more people.

Real life activities!

Diana is leading a Nordic Walking class on Wednesday afternoons from 2.00 pm till 3.00 pm. The classes are £5, payable by cash or cheque, on the day. We will supply the poles and Diana will give full instructions. You can just turn up on the day.

Sue will be leading her Tai Chi class outside the Jubilee Centre on Thursday morning at 11.00. This class is £5 - pay Sue. If it rains and it gets cancelled, our cafe is open for a coffee.

Online activities

We are continuing with some online activities until we can reopen the centre properly.

Diana will be on our Facebook page on Monday for gentle exercise and chair-based exercise and on Tuesday, we see the return of Dancefit. Go to https://www.facebook.com/ageukbury for details.

Sue will be leading her Tai Chi class on Friday morning. Send an email to taichi.college@yahoo.co.uk for an access code and link to the Zoom app.

Our Charity Shops

Our Ramsbottom charity shop is open from 10 am to 4 pm, Wednesday to Sunday and our Bury charity shop is now open on Tuesday to Saturday from 10 to 4.

We are unable to collect donations at the moment but we can accept over-the-counter donations if you are able to bring them to the shop.

We will be asking our shoppers to wear facemasks and keep their distance from others. We really need our staff and volunteers to stay healthy and our shops to stay open.

Our services

During the pandemic, we are keeping essential support services open. These include:

Jubilee Centre activities

We will update readers on activities in next week’s newsletter.

Part Three: And in other news

TV Licence

Free TV licences for over-75s were axed last year, except for those who claim pension credit. A transition period was allowed due to the pandemic but that grace period will end tomorrow (31st July 2021) which means anyone who hasn’t paid for a TV licence, but needs one, could be fined.

If you need information about how to claim for Pension Credit, call us on 0161 763 9030 and Louise or Ruth will help you through the process.

For more information about the TV Licence, go to https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/benefits-entitlements/tv-licence-concessions/

Petition to stop the closure of Spurr House

An online petition has been set up to oppose the closure of Spurr House, a service run by Bury Council, offering respite to older people in Bury.

To sign, go to https://www.change.org/p/bury-council-stop-the-closure-of-spurr-house

Survey on routine and non-urgent surgery

Are you waiting for a routine or non-urgent surgery?

Healthwatch Bury are asking people waiting for hospital appointments to share their thoughts and experiences in a new online survey: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/RBH3W7Z

TOMORROW: Open Day at Bury Art Museum – Saturday 31th July from 10 am

Bury Art Museum will be hosting a few one-off happenings over the day as well as some great new exhibitions to visit. For more information, go to https://www.facebook.com/events/661967434759692/

TOMORROW: Adult Learning Courses in Bury

Are you thinking about enrolling on an adult learning course in September? Find out more about their wide range of courses and try a free taster session in art, crafts, maths, mindfulness, languages and much more.

There is an online open day tomorrow - Saturday 31 July (10am to 12pm)

You can book sessions and 'meet' staff online and find out more about courses starting in September

More at https://www.mynewsdesk.com/uk/bury-council/pressreleases/discover-the-world-of-adult-learning-with-our-new-courses-3117230

SUNDAY: Weeding at Clarence Park

Members of the Friends of Clarence Park will be meeting to tackle the weeds arounds Clarence Park. Join them on Sunday, 1st August at 11:00. More info at https://www.facebook.com/events/354724772845750/

100 Club - This month’s winners

Today, we can announce this month’s winners in our 100 Club.

For the July draw, we had 48 members. The winning numbers are:

1st prize No 12
2nd prize No 14
3rd prize No 3

The numbers were chosen using a computerised random number generator and independently verified. The cheques will be in the post tonight and should be with you soon.

There are plenty of numbers to purchase and if you would like to join for next month’s draw, please call us on 0161 763 9030 and we will send you a brochure. Alternatively, click on this link: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/bury/get-involved/100club/

The Weekly Quiz

The answers to last week’s Quiz is in the link.

This week’s Quiz brings you another 30 questions to test your knowledge. This quiz is just for you and your friends to enjoy. The answers will be sent out with next week’s newsletter.

If you have any news to share, please send to news@ageukbury.org.uk

Many congratulations to James Guy, who was born in Bury, for winning Gold in the 4x200 metres freestyle relay, alongside his teammates Tom Dean, Matthew Richards and Duncan Scott. Go Team GB!

Keep safe and keep dry!

Andy and all at Age UK Bury