Coronavirus COVID-19 (Updated 01 June 2020)
Now more than ever, Every Mind Matters.
All over the country we’re staying at home to protect the NHS and save lives. We’ll all be experiencing highs and lows and it’s perfectly normal to miss loved ones, get frustrated, feel anxious or stressed. There are things we can all do to look after our mental wellbeing at this time. Every Mind Matters can help get you started with your NHS online plan, showing you simple steps to help deal with stress, boost your mood and feel on top of things. The NHS Every Mind Matters website provides simple tips and advice for you to look after your mental wellbeing during this time – visit Every Mind Matters to get your free online personal Mind Plan.
Check out the latest NHS campaign video
NHS advice includes:
- Maintaining contact with friends and family via telephone and video calls, or social media
- Keeping a regular routine and sleeping pattern
- Looking after your body with indoor exercise
- Talking about your worries – with friends or via a helpline / voluntee service
- Staying on top of difficult feelings and try and manage unhelpful thoughts
- Finding time to relax and trying out relaxation techniques;
- Focusing on a hobby or learning something new
It's important that you take care of your mind as well as your body and to get further support if you need it. We’re all in this together.
Every Mind Matters provides simple NHS-approved tips and advice to start taking better care of your mental health. If you are still struggling after several weeks and it is affecting your daily life, please contact NHS 111 Online
Visit the NHS Mental Health & Wellbeing advice website for self-assessment, audio guides and practical tools, if you are experiencing stress, feelings of anxiety or low mood.
Still Zooming - Selling Parish Council continues its monthly online meetings on Zoom
The 'Coronavirus Act 2020' allows local councils to hold their regular meetings online. We have now held two scheduled monthy meetings online (using Zoom). We are pleased to say that at the recent meeting on 21 May 2020 all parish councillors joined by video, with one joining by phone. Andrew Bowles was re-elected Chair and Kevin Hobson was re-elected Vice-Chair for 2020-21. Mr. David Wood, Senior Teacher at Selling Church of England Primary School, presented a highly informative update on the School and answered some questions from the meeting. The Council and residents present were very grateful for David's excellent update and extended a warm invitation to him and the School to join and inform future meetings. At each meeting, we offer a comprehensive report of how the Parish Council is responding to COVID-19.
The next online meeting is Thursday 18 June 2020 at an earlier time of 6.00 pm. All are welome to join. In the interests of security and GDPR, you can get the log-in details from our Clerk, Wendy Gregory via email: clerk@sellingparishcouncil.gov.uk
Coronavirus Newsletter No. 2
Now available to see on our News page. We deliver a newsletter to all households. If you know someone who does not have access to the internet, you may want to consider printing it for them. You can download the newsletter here /_UserFiles/Files/News and Events/Coronavirus2.pdf
Kent Together 24 Hour Helpline
If you are vulnerable and have an urgent need that cannot be met through existing support networks, you can contact the Kent Together Helpline at www.kent.gov.uk/KentTogether or by calling on 03000 41 92 92. It is a 24 hour service.
The 24 hour helpline has been set up to support vulnerable people in Kent who need urgent help, supplies or medication. The Kent Together Helpline provides a single, convenient point of contact for anyone in the county who is in urgent need of help during the Coronavirus outbreak. It is a collaboration between KCC, central Government, District, Borough and local councils, the voluntary and community sector, the NHS and other partners to ensure help is at hand for vulnerable people.
It is also the place to report your concerns about the welfare of someone else.
Kent Together is being coordinated by Kent County Council which will feed the information through the network of volunteers, district and borough council teams and local support groups, to ensure people get the support they need, when they need it. People’s needs will be assessed and staff will liaise with Community Hubs in the districts to prioritise those who need urgent help.
Kent County Council also has a page on its website answering frequently-asked questions and the very latest Coronavirus information on its service updates page. Visit www.kent.gov.uk to find out more.
Swale Borough Council Community Support Line
The Support Line is for those who need to self-isolate and who don‘t have friends or family to support them. If you are over 70, under 70 with underlying health conditions, are self-isolating because you have symptoms, or live with someone with symptoms and have no friends or family nearby who can help, call 01795 417525.
The line is open:
• Monday to Thursday 9am to 5pm
• Friday 9am to 4:30pm
• Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays 10am to 2pm
Outside these times contact the Kent Together Helpline at Kent Together or by calling 03000 41 92 92. For more information, visit Swale Community Response.
Get Coronavirus support as a clinically extremely vulnerable person
If you have a medical condition which makes you extremely vulnerable to coronavirus (COVID-19), government asks you to register and tell them whether or not you need support. You will need your NHS number. Register with government here It is possible for another person to register on your behalf, for example if you do not have access to the internet. If you are unsure whether your medical condition makes you extremely vulnerable, register anyway.
You may have received a letter from the NHS telling you that you’re clinically extremely vulnerable, or been contacted by your GP or hospital clinician. If this has not happened by Monday 30 March, contact your GP or clinician after you register with this service. It may take time for any support offered through this service to arrive. Wherever possible you should continue to rely on friends, family and wider support to help you meet your needs.
Use trusted sources of information
The Parish Council are committed to making sure all Selling residents have timely and authoritative, trusted sources of information at this challenging time. The Coronavirus COVID-19 situation is fast-moving and there is still an increasing amount of misinformation online, including much on social media. In times of stress, such as the Coronavirus emergency, looking constantly at your Facebook, Instagram and other social media can cause anxiety, panic attacks and even symptoms of depression. It is easy to be overcome by the sheer amount of information and not check who is posting it and whether it is reliable.
We should all be using government advice to inform our decision making and be checking that advice regularly. The links below offer reliable, expert information from government sources and are updated regularly. The person on Facebook you have never met who is suddenly an expert in epidemiology is probably not someone you want to trust with your life.
Don't Feed The Beast is a short video clip from the Cabinet Office that sums up how to avoid being taken in by false or misleading social media.
To help the public spot false information about Coronavirus the government is running the SHARE checklist and Don’t Feed The Beast campaign. This gives the public five easy steps to follow to identify whether information may be misleading.
WhatsApp groups in Selling
So far, we have details of WhatsApp groups and organisors in Perry Wood, Vicarage Lane, Featherbed Lane, and Hop Pickers Close. If your WhatsApp group is not shown, please let us know what street(s) you cover and name and phone no.of the organisor. Our Privacy Policy covers the legal and safe use of your personal data. Apart from the benefits of communication in very local groups, a network of WhatsApp groups allows important or urgent information to be shared widely and quickly. Our aim is remains that every household in Selling is able to speak to someone in their local community at any time and receives regular welfare checks if they choose. Even though many will be self-isolating, nobody has to feel alone or excluded.
Perry Wood
Exercise is still vitally important for people’s physical and mental wellbeing, so the government has said people can leave their homes for exercise as many times as they like and with no restriction on duration or travelling distance. See What you can and can't do since 13 May 2020 .We are aware residents continue to express concern about the amount of people continuing to drive to Perry Wood from all over the county and who ignore social distancing.
The Parish Council has consistently liaised with Swale Borough Council, who have responsibility for the management of Perry Wood ,and our Local Policing Team from Kent Police. A Police Report is provided to the each Parish Council meeting and included in the minutes.
Don't get scammed
Naturally the health and well-being of all is our primary concern. This includes keeping safe from potential fraud. Please think carefully before displaying a "self-isolation card" that announces you are of a certain age, in isolation, or on your own. Sadly we know from Kent Police that shameless criminals are looking to exploit opportunities in the current crisis by knocking on doors or phoning and pretending to be from the health authority or Police. They may say they can take your temperature or test for CO-VID19. Do not open the door to strangers and please never ever let them in. Never give anyone cash or details of your bank card or PIN number.
Information and guidance from Kent Police on latest scams
No genuine member of a health authority or Police will ever ask for your personal bank details. If you ask a stranger to go away and they don't, call 999 and ask for Police. If you are unsure about anyone who phones you, do not say why and just end the call. If you think you’ve been the victim of a scam, then speak to your bank immediately and report any fraud to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040
Access to the internet
We are aware that some residents are not able to get online. If you know anybody in Selling that does not have access to the internet please let us know. At this time of national emergency we want to help make sure everybody gets information in a way they wish.
Please volunteer to help
If you feel that you are able to contribute in any way to the community effort, have ideas or skills or experience or simply just want to help - please Contact us
Key sources of information and advice:
- National advice continues to refer everyone in the first instance to the NHS Website
- If you think you may have symptoms of Coronavirus stay at home and go to the questionnaire page at NHS 111 Online
- New Every Mind Matters: Every Mind Matters has created new COVID 19 specific material to help support mental health whilst staying at home. These include long and short videos featuring Dr Hilary Jones and some animations. Now available to download on the Campaign Resource Centre.
- GOV.UK WhatsApp Coronavirus Information Service: A new GOV.UK WhatsApp Coronavirus Information Service has now been launched. The purpose of this product is to combat the spread of misinformation on social media and in local WhatsApp groups. Trusted information from official sources can be sent to you directly using WhatsApp but it is NOT a WhatsApp group! This is an automated free service. You can not call the number and do not send messages as no person will read them. To use the service, simply add +44 7860 064422 to your contacts and send a WhatsApp message saying “Hi”.
- Coronavirus fact sheet for children: Information for children to help them understand what Coronavirus is, the importance of hand washing and how to help stop the virus spreading is available on the Campaign Resource Centre. This was developed by the Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust. They have also made an animation to go with it. If you want to download the video, you can do that here.
The Parish Council
We are delighted to welcome Councillor Andrew Day as the latest member of the Parish Council. Andrew has a great knowledge of the village, local area and wide professional experience to bring for the benefit of all residents.
The Parish Council is an important tier of local government and works on behalf of Selling residents to make the whole village an even better place. We usually hold a formal statutory Parish Council meeting every month of the year, usually on the third Thursday, and always in public at The Village Hall starting at 7.00 p.m.
The impact of the Coronvirus COVID-19 crisis on the ability of all parish and other councils to hold their statutory meetings has led to the introduction of the Coronavirus Act 2020. This removes the need for meetings to be held in person and allows meetings to be held online or by phone. Our first ever online meeting was the scheduled meeting of Thursday 16 April 2020 held on Zoom at which all parish councillors and five residents were present. Two councillors and one resident joined the meeting by phone.
The Parish Council also formally resolved at its meeting of 19 March 2020 in the interests of public health to approve temporary delegated authority under Section 101, Local Government Act 1972 to transact normal business of the Council to the Proper Officer of the Council (Clerk) Wendy Gregory, acting in consultation with the Chair Andrew Bowles and Vice-Chair Kevin Hobson, until 10 July 2020. This means the Council will need to meet less often to consider strategic issues, with routine and administrative business handled by the Clerk and nominated councillors. It is in effect a sensible contigency measure to enable the Council to properly function and fulfil its statutory duties throughout any emergency.
As well as carrying out its statutory functions, the Council has the ability to take the lead and promote initiatives, projects and improvements for the benefit of all our communities. To do this, Parish Councillors depend on knowing what is important to villagers and offer a variety of ways to engage at any one time.
As they all live in the village, your Councillors are available through face to face contact; via email; through letters or notes; by messaging us on our Facebook page; and through this website. We also hold an open, public forum during each monthly Parish Council meeting for residents to raise or share issues, news or ideas.
Councillors are all unpaid volunteers and from a variety of backgrounds. The current Council administration is allowed seven councillors. Six of these positions are filled and we are actively seeking to co-opt another resident to become a Councillor. If you would like to know more, please contact our Clerk or any other member of the Parish Council.
We welcome your contributions of news, events, photos of village life, stories, ideas and of course feedback on our new website. Please use the Contact Us tab above.