Technical Notes 2021, Issue 209 - Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update - Thursday 23 December 2021

Further to our last Technical Note on Tuesday of this week (TN-203-21), officers have continued to meet on a daily basis to consider necessary actions in light of the continuing escalation of COVID-19 infection rates across East Dunbartonshire.

Officers continue to analyse the implications of the recent Scottish Government measures and guidance, based on the detail currently available. More detailed guidance on some of these measures is expected by the end of the week. This provides a general overview of the measures:

Since our update on Tuesday, we would like to bring to members’ attention the following:

HSCP – Care at Home Services

• While the most recent changes to national guidance do not directly impact delivery of HSCP services, the increased volume of demand, and levels of need and complexity of care required for people accessing our Care at Home services, is particularly high.
• This, coupled with usual seasonal illness and the staff availability impact of the new, more transmissible, covid variant means in-house and commissioned services are significantly stretched and not always able to fulfil all service requirements.
• As a result, it has been necessary to implement our risk and priority rating system to ensure we target services at those most in need, and those who have no other way of being supported. This involves asking families to step in to provide some aspects of care packages. Where this happens, direct services will be resumed for customers as soon as is feasible.  Where replacement care from families is necessary, it is subject to risk assessment and would be agreed in advance, in partnership with customers and families.

EDLCT: Indoor Adult Contact Sports

• The assessment of this restriction is that this will have limited impact on customers of the EDLCT.  The Trust will work with customers and clubs on any possible alternative arrangements, such as non-contact training.

Community Letting: Indoor Adult Contact Sports

• Due to the cessation on indoor adult contact sports, Shared Services are contacting affected customers to discuss the impact of this restriction on their lets within Council facilities. As community lets within schools are still suspended, this restriction will affect only a small number of current customers.

Community Letting: Events

• As members will be aware, for indoor standing events, the limit will be 100 people and for indoor-seated events, it will be 200, with physical distancing of 1m required.  We do have a number of event bookings (e.g. birthday party) for January in both Bearsden Hall and Westerton Hall.
• Attendance at these venues will be capped at 100 people to ensure compliance – Shared Services will liaise with the customers to advise and to provide updated guidance as to the event organiser’s (the customer’s) responsibility under the new measures.

Community Letting: School Lets

• School lets will continue to be suspended and will be reviewed subject to any further guidance relating to schools. As Member’s will be aware the most recent Scottish Government Education guidance states that schools should minimise non-essential contact/attendance within schools, and explicitly referenced that all parent council/parent forum meetings should be held virtually and not on school premises.

Mugdock Pantomime

• Again, due to the restrictions relating to events, the Mugdock pantomime will now be held virtually. Customers will be offered the opportunity to attend virtually or receive a refund.

Employees entering residents’ homes for work purposes

• Scottish Government “safer businesses & workplace” guidance has been updated (separate guidance exists for HSCP) and recommends that before entering other people’s home, workers should undertake a LFD test on the day, prior to attendance.
• It also recommends that householders should also undertake a LFD test on the day, prior to the visit. If anyone in the house is self-isolating, staff should not enter unless the work required is essential/an emergency.
• This new guidance, which is voluntary and neither employees nor householders can be compelled, has been shared with employees and the trades unions. Householders will also be contacted in advance of an employee attending to be advised on the new guidance.

Business Grants

• Various service teams are working on the development and launch of the further business grants announced earlier this week – the application process is planned to be launched in January. Officers will work with appropriate businesses to support the process.

Resilience over the Festive Closure Period

• As advised in our last Technical Note, senior officers have put in place additional service resilience and civil contingency escalation measures should any operational emergency arise over Christmas and New Year.

We would again ask that members prioritise their contact with senior officers over the festive period to urgent/emergency enquiries only and we appreciate your understanding at this time. For your awareness, we have also written to MSPs and MPs to advise that only emergency enquiries will be considered at this time.

We will provide a further update upon return from the festive break, but in the meantime, we would like to extend to you and your families the very best for the festive period.