Rewind: Lincoln public sector strikes march

Boston Borough Council has approved a £4.95 council tax increase for 2021/22.

Band D properties in Boston will go from £192.96 to £197.91, a 2.57% rise.

This amounts to a 9p per week precept increase for band D properties and a 6p per week rise for Band A properties.

The council’s budget was controversially voted, with 15 members for and 10 against.

Cllr Jonathan Noble, portfolio holder for the budget said in the meeting: “In the difficulties this country’s faced in the last year, I’m pleased to say the council’s finances remain in a relatively healthy position.”

A proposal was made for a 0% increase in council tax in the authority’s Full Council meeting on Monday evening, but this was rejected – nine votes to 16.

In the meeting, Cllr Anne Dorian asked the council if there was a way the council could honour the work of Boston-born Professor Jonathan Van-Tam (JVT), Deputy Chief Medical Officer.

Cllr Skinner said he would be willing to take part in anything to honour JVT, who was The Lincolnite’s Person of the Year.

On Monday, South Kesteven agreed on a £5 council tax increase for a Band D property, amounting to 3.06% extra a year, and similarly in West Lindsey on Tuesday.

Last week, North Lincolnshire Council approved a 3.48% council tax increase for 2021/22, which works out as a 45p weekly increase for a Band D property in the authority.

It’s neighbour, North East Lincolnshire Council has approved a 4.98% council tax increase for 2021/22 – with 3% going towards adult social care. This will see a £1.52 per week increase for a Band D property – £79.04 annually.

By Wednesday evening, all Lincolnshire councils will have agreed on their budgets and council tax increases for 2021/22.

Nationally, Rishi Sunak, Chancellor of the Exchequer, will announce details of his spring budget on Wednesday, where he is predicted to extend the furlough scheme until at least May.

All Lincolnshire schools are preparing to reopen next week, with most primary school pupils returning on Monday, with teachers and staff getting tested ahead.

Only children of key workers attended lessons in the latest national lockdown, some 25% of the total number of pupils in Lincolnshire. Now all students will begin to return to face-to-face education from Monday, March 8.

There are several key measures to keep everyone safe from COVID-19:

• All primary school children will return on March 8. Primary school staff will continue to take two rapid COVID-19 tests each week at home
• All secondary school and college students will take three COVID-19 tests as they return to the classroom from March 8 at existing school testing facilities
• Schools and colleges will have discretion on how to test students over the week to enable their return to the classroom.
• After the initial programme of three tests in school or college, students will be given two rapid tests to use each week at home.
• Secondary school and college staff will also be provided with two tests to use each week at home
• All staff at private, voluntary and independent nurseries will have access to tests to use twice weekly at home
• Childminders can continue to access community testing

Wraparound childcare for primary and secondary pupils will resume from March 8 where necessary to enable parents to access work, education or medical care.

Meanwhile, university students on practical courses who need to access specialist facilities and equipment can return to in-person teaching and learning from March 8.

Twice weekly testing will continue to be available for all students and staff on campus.

Martin Smith, assistant director for education at Lincolnshire County Council, said: “All schools are currently working towards reopening next week.

“It’s likely that most primary school pupils will return on the Monday, but we expect many secondary schools will have to adopt a phased return over the first few days so pupils can be tested in a managed way.

“All schools are committed to getting pupils back, but each is likely to have its own approach and will be informing parents of how this will work.

“We’re sure that schools are looking forward to welcoming back their students and will continue to use appropriate safety measures to reduce the potential spread of the virus.”

Colette Morris, Louth Academy Science Technician and now retrained Testing Supervisor, with Principal Philip Dickinson at the Academy’s lateral flow testing stations.

How a multi-academy trust is getting ready to reopen

Tollbar Multi Academy Trust is preparing to test 4,000 students during a phased return to school, beginning on March 8.

All secondary students will be tested every three to five days to ensure that they can safely return to the classroom for the first time since Christmas.

The logistics of the phased return will be slightly different at each of the Trust’s four secondary schools – Tollbar, Cleethorpes, Louth and Somercotes Academies – due to the size of the individual premises and the number of students.

All children with a negative test result will be back in school on Friday, March 12.

Students will have three tests at the academy supervised by staff. Parents will then be offered the opportunity to carry out two lateral flow tests at home per week. However, there will be provision for testing in school for students who may find this difficult.

All students will be expected to wear face masks in corridors and classrooms or any areas where social distancing is not possible.

The Trust’s three Primary Schools – Reynolds Academy in Cleethorpes, Pilgrim Academy in Immingham, and Theddlethorpe Academy – will all return to full-time schooling from March 8.

There is no requirement for testing of primary school children.

Contact your school or education provider to find out more about reopening and testing requirements.

Lincolnshire has been bucking the trend and increasing in COVID-19 cases over the past couple of weeks, with infection rates in some areas now double the national average.

South Holland is number five in the UK, with a 208.4 infection rate — more than double England’s 102.9 figure as a whole. It’s believed outbreaks among field and factory workers are pushing the numbers up, along with extra testing.

Four of the county’s seven districts saw an increase on the previous week’s infection rates, and Boston is now ranked 22 nationally.

However, the number of new cases in the county in February halved compared to January.

Andy Fox, Lincolnshire County Council’s assistant director of public health, said it was “important to be aware that we were far lower than other areas of the country just a few weeks ago”.

“So while other areas seem to have been in a steep decline, which has given them some momentum to go past where we are, a very shallow decline seems to have flattened out here.”

There were 5,412 coronavirus cases and 208 COVID-related deaths recorded in Greater Lincolnshire in February, half as many as January, which saw 10,667 cases and 426 deaths.

Greater Lincolnshire’s infection rates from Feb 22 to Mar 1. | Data: Gov UK / Table: James Mayer for The Lincolnite

He added: “It isn’t a big increase compared to the numbers we were looking at a few weeks ago, but when everywhere else is still decreasing, it makes Lincolnshire suddenly look worse.”

He pointed to figures in early January which saw infection rates in some areas reach more than 500 per 100,000 population at the time.

The main increase, according to the latest data, is among the working age groups, in particularly Mr Fox said, among those working in commercial premises in food production, warehousing and manufacturing.

Mr Fox could not say if it was a change in people’s behaviour or more COVID circulating.

Table showing Lincolnshire’s cases up to March 1. | Image: Gov.uk

However, he did note there had been a “notable jump” in testing in the county in the first two days of the half term and urged people to continue to do so.

In response to concerns over visitors to the coast during warmer weather over the weekend, Mr Fox urged people to remember the country was still in lockdown and that the law had not changed yet.

“If people suddenly jump to the kind of restrictions we’re expecting in April or May, if they say that “oh it’s coming up so I’ll just fast forward a little bit”, then we are likely to see numbers going up faster than the government are planning. and we really don’t want to delay any of these changes to the roadmap.”