No end in sight for lockdown, officials hint

Lincoln City players hosted a meet and greet at the club shop in the city, building anticipation ahead of the new season.

Hundreds of eager Imps fans, young and old, were queuing inside the Waterside Shopping Centre for a chance to meet some of their favourite players on Thursday.

Representatives from both the men’s and women’s team were in attendance, and everyone was in great spirits ahead of the opening fixture of the 2021/22 season this weekend.

Jody Steadman, Katy Thornley and Toni McHamilton from Lincoln City Women were taking pictures with fans. | Photo: Ellis Karran for The Lincolnite

From the men’s team, Cohen Bramall, Liam Bridcutt, Anthony Scully, Lewis Fiorini, Lasse Sorensen, Regan Poole and Tom Hopper were signing autographs and posing for pictures, while Jody Steadman, Katy Thornley and Toni McHamilton were there from the women’s side.

A young fan getting his shirt signed by Lewis Fiorini. | Photo: Ellis Karran for The Lincolnite

The Imps kick their League One campaign off this Saturday with an away trip to Gillingham, looking to go one better than last season, where they narrowly missed out on promotion via the play-offs with Wembley defeat to Blackpool.

Great to see players reconnecting with the fans again after so long apart. | Photo: Ellis Karran for The Lincolnite

It was the supporters’ first chance to meet new signings Lasse Sorensen and Lewis Fiorini before they take to the field for their competitive debuts in Imps shirts.

The meet and greet took place inside the Lincoln City club shop at the Waterside Shopping Centre. | Photo: Ellis Karran for The Lincolnite

The event was run with COVID-secure protocols, such as encouraging the wearing of face coverings and maintaining a social distance where possible, in order to protect both the fans and the players.

Give us a smile! Tom Hopper and Regan Poole, key figures in last season’s success, were welcoming fans at the club shop on Thursday. | Photo: Ellis Karran for The Lincolnite

Some fans were a bit shy when they came face to face with their heroes! | Photo: Ellis Karran for The Lincolnite

Lincoln continues to have the highest COVID infection rate in England on Thursday, with its seven-day rate increasing from 716 per 100,000 population to 741.

Government figures released on Thursday showed 405 new cases in Lincolnshire, 105 in North Lincolnshire and 120 in North East Lincolnshire. The 630 case total is 2% higher than last Thursday’s 618 cases.

There were no coronavirus-related deaths in the government figures today in the Lincolnshire region. However, NHS figures reported one further death in Greater Lincolnshire’s hospital facilities today.

Around a quarter of under 30s in Lincolnshire still have not had their first dose of COVID-19 vaccination as youth hotspots are blamed for Lincoln sitting top of the national rankings for its infection rate.

Vaccine figures released by the government on Thursday showed Lincolnshire health staff had now given out 1,030,246 cumulative doses, up 11,030 on the previous week’s 1,019,216 total. That’s 2,026 doses fewer than the previous week’s 13,056.

According to the figures released today, 74% of 18-24-year-olds in Lincolnshire have received their first dose, while 76.2% of 25-29-year-olds have had theirs. The figures are up only slightly from last week’s 73.5% and 75.3% respectively.

Lincolnshire’s coronavirus cases up to August 5.

Elsewhere, changes to the government’s travel list will see fully-vaccinated passengers from France no longer having to isolate, alongside several other EU countries.

The new rules, which come in from 4am on Sunday, August 8, will see Austria, Germany, Latvia, Norway, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia move to green list on the government’s traffic light system.

Meanwhile, Bahrain, India, Qatar and UAE will move to the amber list from the red list. And Georgia, Mayotte, Mexico and Reunion will move to the red list.

New figures have shown that the number of COVID-19 app alerts fell by 43% in England and Wales in the last week of July, official statistics show. Nearly 396,000 people were pinged, compared with the previous week’s 690,129.

The number of people testing positive for COVID-19 in England has dropped by 39% according to the latest Test and Trace figures.

In the week to July 28, a total of 189,232 people tested positive for the virus in England.

Further data from the Office for National Statistics have revealed around 945,000 in the UK have experienced long COVID in the four weeks to July 4.

Around 380,000 people in the UK have experienced symptoms of long COVID for at least a year, the ONS has said.

Coronavirus data for Greater Lincolnshire on Thursday, August 5

84,144 cases (up 630)

• 54,988 in Lincolnshire (up 405)
• 12,927 in North Lincolnshire (up 105)
• 16,229 in North East Lincolnshire (up 120)

2,224 deaths (no change)

• 1,633 from Lincolnshire (no change)
• 305 from North Lincolnshire (no change)
• 286 from North East Lincolnshire (no change)

of which 1,332 hospital deaths (up one)

• 823 at United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust (up one)
• 43 at Lincolnshire Community Health Service hospitals (no change)
• 1 at Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust (no change)
• 465 in Northern Lincolnshire (NLAG) (no change)

5,952,756 UK cases, 130,000 deaths

DATA SOURCE — FIGURES CORRECT AT THE TIME OF THE LATEST UPDATE. POSTCODE DATA INCLUDES DEATHS NOT IN HEALTHCARE FACILITIES OR IN HOSPITALS OUTSIDE AUTHORITY BOUNDARIES.

Climate change will be the theme for the Uncle Henry’s Maize Maze 2021 this summer near Gainsborough, ahead of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow in November, also known as COP26.

The award-winning five-acre Maize Maze returns again and this time is part of the Behind the Garden Wall at Uncle Henry’s experience at Grayingham Grange Farm in Grayingham, Gainsborough.

Tickets are now on sale priced at £8.95 per person or £30 for a group ticket for four people – book tickets here. Tickets include access to the Maize Maze, Fairy Trail, and use of their Jumping Pillows and Crazy Golf.

Visitors must answer questions on the farm’s sustainability initiatives to decipher a secret code, before finding their way out.

The maze’s new theme of climate change was chosen as Uncle Henry’s is taking the opportunity to inform its customers about their farming philosophy and the sustainability initiatives that are happening at the farm.

Ten markers are hidden in the maze for people to find. They must then answer questions on the farm’s sustainability initiatives to decipher a secret code, before finding their way out.

The maze will be open until September 5, 2021.

Behind the Garden Wall, including the maze, is open 9.30am to 5pm every day of the summer holidays until September 5, 2021.

Meanwhile, the Fairy Trail which launched in May continues to be available for visitors, who follow visual clues through the woodlands to complete a quest set by the Fairy Queen. Uncle Henry’s Cafe is open 9.30am-5pm Monday to Saturday and 10am-4pm on Sundays for breakfast, lunch and coffee.