Local News

An emergency meeting to place this afternoon (Monday 23rd November) to help tackle the number of cases of coronavirus in Swale.

The meeting was called by Swale Borough Council in response to the recent rise in the number of cases in the borough with the latest government figures showing 645.6 cases per 100,000 people in the week up to Wednesday 18th November - just behind Hull, which was the country's worst-affected place last week.

The meeting included representatives from partner agencies such as Kent County Council, Kent Police, HM Prison Service and Public Health England.

Cllr Roger Truelove, Leader of Swale Borough Council, told SFM News: “This was a valuable meeting where we were able to bring together a wide range of interested parties to discuss where we are and how we are going to improve the situation. We received the very latest figures from our public health colleagues, and these showed that whilst we do seem to be starting to see a fall in cases locally, they are clearly still too high. There are also worrying signs that the infection is growing among the over-60’s who are more vulnerable to this virus, and we are sadly starting to see the number of deaths increase. We also heard that Swale has the second highest level of testing in the county, which shows that the work we’ve been doing to encourage people with symptoms to get tested is getting through, and it will ultimately make a difference.

Cllr Truelove went on to add: “We also had confirmation that only 12 per cent of cases in the last couple of weeks are related to care homes and prison settings, and that this isn’t a problem that is just on the Isle of Sheppey, but elsewhere across the borough. The overwhelming majority of cases are through community transmission. It’s spreading in residential settings, and through social activity and it only takes a small number of people to create the clusters of cases that are driving up our figures. This is why we needed to call the meeting, so we could be sure where we need to concentrate our resources to get the cases under control again. We will be getting in touch with local supermarkets to ask for them to be as vigilant as possible, and we will be carrying out work to make sure everyone involved understands the reasons why people might not feel able to follow the rules.

He continued by saying:  “Parents seen with in supermarkets with children who should be isolating may not have any other childcare and can’t afford the minimum spend for a home delivery. People may be unwilling to get a test as they can’t afford to have time off work. These are issues we need to be able to identify so the relevant agencies can step in with the right support. Everyone is committed to making sure people understand the seriousness of the situation to people, and if we don’t follow the rules in place, we face a winter of further restrictions.”

The meeting was attended by officers from Kent County Council, Public Health England, Kent Police, HM Prison Service, the NHS, The Federation of Small Businesses, The Department for Work and Pensions, Optivo and Swale CVS and at the meeting it was revealed that only 12% of the borough's total cases come from it's two maximum security prions and local care homes.

The Borough of Swale officially has the second highest Covid-19 infection rate in the country.

Swale recorded 928 cases of coronavirus, while Thanet (Kent's previous highest authority area) recorded only 725 positive cases between Sunday 8th November and Saturday 14th November.

This latest fugure takes the borough's infection rate from 296.5 per 100,000 to 637.7 per 100,000.

Tony Weaver will be talking to local MP for Sittingbourne & Sheppey, Gordon Henderson, on tomorrow's 'In The Bourne' from 11am. Earlier this week Mr Henderson told BBC Radio Kent that: "the worst hit parts of county for the virus were those that are deeply deprived areas".

If you have a question for Gordon Henderson MP please text: 078 600 2 03 03 (from 6:00am tomorrow* Fri 20/11/20).

Earlier this week Cllr Roger Truelove, Leader of Swale Council, warned 106.9 SFM listeners and local residents that: “Unless we can level off the rate of growth in COVID-19 infections we risk a longer period of high-level restrictions beyond 2nd December. If we don’t do something to contain it, we risk spending Christmas in lockdown."

For more information on COVID-19 infection rates locally please visit: kent.gov.uk/social-care-and-health/health/coronavirus/cases-in-kent.

Swale Borough Council have further information at: swale.gov.uk/news-and-your-council/coronavirus.

A CCTV image of a man has been issued by officers investigating a series of reported shopliftings in Sittingbourne.

Several incidents have taken place at the Shell garage on London Road since Sunday 4th October, in which alcohol has been stolen and members of staff threatened.

Sergeant Chris Skilton, from Kent Police, tikd SFM News: "We believe the man in the CCTV image may be able to assist us with our enquiries and urge anyone who may know who he is to get in touch. While we appreciate that only a small part of the man’s head and face can be seen, we are hopeful someone may recognise him from his haircut or the hooded top he is wearing.’

Anyone with any information is urged to call the appeal line on 01795 419119 quoting reference 46/178345/20. Alternatively they can call the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or complete the online form at www.crimestoppers-uk.org.

Anyone worried about businesses not following the Government’s coronavirus regulations can report their concerns to Swale Borough Council.

With new restrictions in force, the council is increasing the number of spot checks on local businesses to make sure they are complying with the regulations in place.

The council has the power to issue fines to firms of up to £10,000 if they are found to be breaching the regulations, and the police can issue fixed penalty notices of up to £6,400 to individuals.

Cllr Roger Truelove, Leader of Swale Borough Council, told SFM News: “We are doing our bit to ensure local businesses are complying with the new restrictions. Our compliance team carried out more than 500 checks last weekend, on top of the 116 businesses visited before lockdown began. As expected, lots of businesses were closed, with mostly food establishments offering a takeaway service remaining open. Most of the businesses we visited were complying with the guidelines and we haven’t had to issue any fines yet".

He went on to say: "We want to remind anybody visiting a takeaway establishment to adhere to social distancing while waiting outside for their order, and to wear a face covering when inside ordering or collecting their food. We also visited essential retail businesses to make sure they were compliant. We carried out checks all over the borough, especially in retail areas and in places where we have received any complaints".

He added: "We encourage anybody who has any concerns about businesses operating outside of government guidelines to report their concerns to us so that we can carry out the required checks. It’s important for us all to follow the government guidance to reduce the risk of infections, because if we can’t level off the rise in infections in Swale, we will be facing a long period of restrictions. Any businesses that are unsure of how to implement the guidance and need advice can reach out to us for help and support.

Businesses wanting advice can contact the council on ehadmin@swale.gov.uk.

To report concerns about a local business in Swale not complying with the coronavirus restrictions, you can use the form at  www.swale.gov.uk/stay-safe-concerns.

To report an issue of people not complying with the instructions, such as large gatherings of people from different households, you can use the form at

www.kent.police.uk/tua/tell-us-about/c19/tell-us-about-possible-breach-coronavirus-measures.

The latest advice and guidance for businesses is available at www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19.