Covid 19 & Vaccinations
An additional 371 cases of Covid 19 have been registered in Sutton Coldfield for the week of 29th October - 4th November compared to an updated figure of 449 for the week of 22nd - 28th October based on data from Birmingham City Council’s public health division.
In the 7 days up to 4th November, there were 3,155 cases in Birmingham (276.6 cases/100k population), an increase compared to 2,994 cases (262.5/100k population) in the previous week.
Over the 7 days leading up to 5th November, of 28,662 PCR pillar 2 tests 3,982 (13.9%) were positive in Birmingham, marginally higher than the positivity rates for West Midlands and England as a whole.
Birmingham is 13th in the region for pillar 2 PCR tests rates with 2,513 tests per 100k population. 63,147 LFD pillar 2 tests were also carried out.
The attached image shows the number of first and second vaccines per age group for Sutton Coldfield from data published yesterday. 11.5 million people have now received their third/booster vaccine across the UK.
Walk-in appointments are taking place at a mass vaccination centres across the Birmingham City Council area for those aged 16 and over. Please check the latest availability via: www.birminghamandsolihullcovidvaccine.nhs.uk/walk-in over 16s can also continue to book in advance online as normal including bringing forward your second dose if your appointment is more than 8 weeks from your first vaccine: www.nhs.uk/covid-vaccination.
Royal Sutton Coldfield updates
Manorial Wood in Roughley (also known as Dead Man’s Wood) has been cleared of its Corsican pines which I appreciate has created some alarm locally. I am due to speak to Tina Swani, the Chief Executive of the Sutton Coldfield Charitable Trust about their plans to replant Manorial Wood with native broad-leaved trees. https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/felling-birmingham-woods-real-necessity-22106158
McCarthy Stone are holding a two week-long virtual consultation to display their proposals for a new retirement living development on land adjacent to the Empire Cinema off Holland Road, a site that has previously been used as a pay and display car park. The Empire Cinema has been seeking a buyer to redevelop the Holland Road car park, providing the cinema with funding necessary to bring forward their plans for a much needed refurbishment. The scheme would see 43 Retirement Living apartments, on-site car parking and landscaped gardens. The consultation will run online until Tuesday 23rd November. www.mccarthystoneconsultation.co.uk/suttoncoldfield I appreciate that some concerns have been raised already about the viability of the cinema without the parking facilities.
Good news this week as businesses across our town centre voted in favour of renewing our local Business Improvement District (BID). The renewal of Sutton Coldfield Town Centre BID will commence on the 1st of January and businesses with a rateable value of £7,500 or above will pay a levy based upon their rateable value, creating a collective fund of more than £1.3 million to spend over the next five years. https://suttoncoldfieldtowncentre.co.uk/2021/11/09/its-a-yes-sutton-coldfield-town-centre-businesses-celebrate-positive-bid-result/ I met Mike Bushell from the BID last month and I am confident that the BID’s renewal will be a real boost to our town centre and local businesses over the coming months.
Congratulations to local businessman Doug Wright who along with the rest of the Ronald McDonald team raised an astonishing £320k at last night’s fundraising event at the Midland Hotel in Birmingham. The Charity does marvellous work in housing families who have sick children staying at Birmingham Children's Hospital.
I have been notified that there will be a full closure of the M42 (southbound and northbound) between Junctions 9 and 10, for seven days between 9pm on Friday 24th December until 9pm on Friday 31st December. The closure will enable a bridge to be installed that will carry the HS2 line over the M42 motorway near Junction 9. This period has been selected as the time likely to cause least disruption to road users as National Highways modelling shows traffic levels drop during the holiday period. In order to reduce traffic disruption, a unique construction method is being used which will require two one-week closures of the motorway over a 12-month period, rather than three months of total overnight closures and around two years of reduced lane widths and speed limits which a traditional design would have required.
Details of the Government’s new Workforce Recruitment and Retention Fund for adult social care have been published. The fund will bolster the capacity of the adult social care workforce over winter, helping to ensure care workers can continue to deliver high quality care for the most vulnerable in our society. This funding comes on top of the additional £388 million infection control funding that we announced for adult social care in September. The fund will enable local authorities to work closely with providers to consider innovative measures to boost adult social care workforce capacity. Birmingham City Council will receive £3,791,867 from the fund.
The West Midlands Combined Authority has launched its next round of digital bootcamps to improve the digital skills across our region. The bootcamps are free of charge equip participants with digital skills, giving them to access roles in areas such as coding, cybersecurity and digital marketing. https://birmingham.tech/digital-skills/digital-bootcamps/
Central England Co-operative are running their third annual Christmas Toy Appeal which runs until December 3rd. The staff are looking to collect as many toys as they can at their stores and funeral homes and are working with local organisations such as Birmingham Salvation Army, Rainbows Hospice and the Active Wellbeing Society, as well as many local groups. All the details can be found here https://www.membershipmatters.coop/retailer-looks-for-support-to-bring-smiles-to-childrens-faces-this-christmas-with-annual-toy-appeal/ The appeal is only running in Central England Co-op stores (in Sutton that is the Coop food store at 4 Walmley Close and 441 Birmingham Road and the funeralcare at 30 Boldmere Road) https://stores.centralengland.coop
Congratulations to Laura Shoaf who will become the permanent Chief Executive of the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) subject to approval by the Board later this month. Laura has been the WMCA’s interim Chief Executive since June.
West Midlands Metro and Transport for West Midlands have decided to remove all 21 trams from their metro service until further notice (at least a month) due to safety concerns relating to cracks that were identified on several of their trams earlier this year. All Metro tickets will be valid on bus services 74/79 between Wolverhampton – West Bromwich and Birmingham. Passengers can use train services between Birmingham Snow Hill and the Jewellery Quarter and The Hawthorns. Passengers can also use train services between Wolverhampton and Birmingham New Street.
On Sunday I will be attending our local Remembrance parade and service. A series of wreaths will be laid and the church service will take place at Holy Trinity Parish Church. Unlike last year when greater restrictions were in place, members of the public are encouraged to come and watch the Parade.
Westminster news and Parliamentary business
This week I have added my name to Jeremy’s Hunt NHS Workforce Amendment ahead of Report Stage of the Health and Care Bill. His amendment is backed by a number of organisations including Macmillan. It will help ensure the NHS is training enough doctors and nurses to meet future population demands by legislating for the Government to report on workforce requirements. It would mean that the Secretary of State must, at least once every two years, lay a report to Parliament describing the system in place for assessing and meeting the workforce needs of the health, social care and public health services in England.
I have also added my name in support of a number of amendments to the Building Safety Bill which have been tabled by Stephen McPartland. His new clauses relate to cladding and building safety measures and have been tabled to help those that have faced difficulty with remediation works following Grenfell. The Bill will return to the House of Commons in the coming weeks for report stage. Report stage gives MPs an opportunity to consider further amendments to a Bill which has been examined in committee.
I am backing Chris Bryant’s Acquired Brain Injury Private Members’ Bill which has received cross party support. 1.4 million people are living with an Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) in the UK and Chris is calling for a national strategy on ABI, based on the Autism Act 2008, which was introduced by Dame Cheryl Gillan to improve support for those with autism.
The NHS will receive £248 million over the next year to invest in technology that will help provide patients with a faster diagnosis and earlier treatment as well as reducing waiting lists. Funding will allow hospital labs to share patient results, tests and scans more easily between different hospitals and doctors, reducing the time it takes to diagnose a health problem. It aims to drive up efficiency by saving staff time, and comes as part of the Government’s plans to tackle waiting lists and speed up routine treatment.
In COP 26 news, the UK is to provide a £500m boost to support the landmark international agreement to end deforestation by 2030. This will help protect over five million hectares of tropical rainforests and create thousands of green jobs across Africa, Asia and Latin America. We have also launched a £65m Just Rural Transition support programme to help communities move towards more sustainable methods of agriculture and food production. On Wednesday Ministers confirmed the UK will become the first country in the world to commit to phasing out non-zero emissions HGVs. Yesterday we launched a new Urban Climate Action programme to support cities and regions in the developing countries that are most impacted by climate change. Backed by £27.5 million of new UK International Climate Finance, the programme will support cities across Africa, Asia and Latin America tackle climate change and prepare low-carbon infrastructure projects.
I appreciate that a number of people are concerned about MPs that have outside interests. I can’t see any valid argument against an independent review of the system which the standards committee can do at any time. My own outside interests are long-standing and properly recorded in the register of members’ interests . My constituents have always been my top priority and my outside interests do not trespass on my service to the Royal Town and all who live here.
Opportunities and Events
The Boldmere Community Festival and Christmas Lights Switch on is scheduled to take place on Sunday 21st November from 1-6pm. The Royal Town’s Mayor will give a Christmas message at 5.30pm before the Christmas Lights are switched on by Perry, the Commonwealth TGames Mascot
The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games team has launched free online learning resources for primary schools, themed around the Queen’s Baton Relay. Designed to provide learning opportunities both in the classroom and for at-home learning, the resources have been created for Reception, Key Stage One, and Key Stage Two. The aim is to develop children's understanding of the Queen’s Baton Relay, covering the history of the tradition, the Baton design, and the Baton Relay route as it travels to Birmingham. www.birmingham2022.com/qbr
Western Power Distribution has launched its new ‘Community Matters’ scheme, a half-a-million pound fuel poverty fund to help families heat their homes this winter. Local charities, councils and community groups can apply for grants worth up to £10,000 in order to aid their fuel poverty support activities. It is expected that more than 100 grassroots organisations will be supported via the scheme. Applications for the ‘Community Matters Fund’ are welcome from registered charities, community groups and councils within the WPD distribution network area. The closing date for submissions is Monday 22nd November. https://www.westernpower.co.uk/community-matters-fund.
Severn Trent is an Official Nature & Carbon Neutral Supporter for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games and will help to create 2022 acres of legacy forests, as well as 72 tennis-court-sized Tiny Forests, to be built in urban areas across the West Midlands. Schools and community groups in the West Midlands have until Friday 26th November to express an interest in hosting a Tiny Forest. Applications also remain open for land owners interested in being part of the Commonwealth Forest. https://www.stwater.co.uk/legacy-forests/
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