Tag: health

Posted on

2021 HWJRA Annual Report

It’s been two years since our last AGM (the 2020 AGM falling victim to the pandemic) and during this time the Association has been a little less visible than normal as there have been no public meetings and only one newsletter.

However, our social media presence has continued as usual and behind the scenes HWJRA has continued to work with local authorities and stakeholders on various issues of concern to our local community.

HWJRA committee

I would like to record my thanks to the officers and committee who have served for the past two years.

The work is all voluntary and the time put in by officers and committee members is greatly appreciated – so thanks to Fiona Bruce, Jeffrey Fox, Andrew Jackson, Dawn Dunn, John Stephenson, Ian Cavanagh, Katherine Shipley and Cornelia Moosman.

Thanks to FOVALD’s Lending a Hand group

I would also like to record particular thanks to John Stephenson and the Lending A Hand team who work so hard to keep the area’s green spaces clean, tidy and thriving.

This time of year in High West Jesmond is a particular delight with all the blossom and flowers on display and the Lending A Hand team, in combination with Mother Nature, play a significant part in keeping the area so beautiful.

Join HWJRA

We  are always keen to expand membership so if you know of a local resident who isn’t a member then please do encourage them to join.

All they need to do is to email our membership secretary Jeffrey Fox with their name, contact details and address (which must be in High West Jesmond).

You can send a message to us through our Contact page on this website.

High West Jesmond during lockdown

COVID-19 response

It feels like a distant memory now, but at the very beginning of the pandemic there was a lot of uncertainty about what was going to happen and how people would go about their basic day-to-day lives.

A local volunteer group was established to assist people who were unable to get shopping or deal with routine matters and HWJRA distributed details to residents.

Our Facebook group (High West Jesmond Residents Association), website (highwestjesmond.co.uk) and Twitter feed (@highwestjesmond) have also proven to be useful for residents to keep in touch during a time when physical contact has been difficult.

North Shore coffee

As lockdown continued, our area became increasingly popular as a place for people to meet, have a chat, take exercise, and have a coffee.

It has been lovely to see the area’s green spaces put to such good use and the arrival of the North Shore Coffee van gave a particular focus to the Little Moor area.

Larger crowds have an impact on an area so HWJRA has worked hard to try to ensure a balance between promoting the area as a great place to live and visit, whilst maintaining the character of a quiet, leafy residential suburb.

We have liaised closely with Toby, who runs North Shore Coffee, to ensure that he does everything he can to enforce social distancing and to encourage residents to dispose of litter thoughtfully.

Toby has been responsive to all requests from the Association including providing additional bins and making plans (soon to be implemented) for re-turfing areas of grass that have been worn away by people queuing at the van.

The vast majority of feedback that the Association has received about the coffee van has been positive and we are pleased that the owner has been so pro-active and responsive to our requests.

Litter

Lockdown has seen a significant increase in usage of the Little Moor by dog walkers and people meeting for drinks and picnics.

Again, while this is welcome, the amount of waste this produces has had an impact.

We have liaised with the council on several occasions to get the frequency of bin emptying on Little Moor increased and the Lending A Hand team, along with several community-spirited residents, have been out on the green spaces collecting litter left behind by less thoughtful visitors.

Trees

We have maintained our strong links with Mark Todd and the team at Urban Green Newcastle who are responsible for managing the trees in the area.

Mark liaises with us when any remedial work is necessary on local trees such as recent pruning work. The trees are a great asset and we have found the Urban Green team very sympathetic to requests to maintain and, where appropriate, replace trees in our area.

City Fibre

In Autumn 2020, the area was fitted out with high-speed fibre optic cable by a company called City Fibre.

Whilst the addition of high-speed fibre cable is a positive thing for the area, we were concerned about the condition some of the pavements and green spaces had been left in after the fitting had occurred.

This was particularly the case with the ill-judged positioning of the cable boxes on Little Dene which were limiting access to the footpath.

Fortunately, we found the installation team at City Fibre to be responsive to our requests for remedial work to be done and the cable boxes have now been relocated and additional work to areas of road and pavement has been implemented.

Anti social behaviour

Without doubt, the biggest issue of concern to residents over this past year has been the unwelcome and very significant increase in anti-social behaviour.

Particular “hotspots” have been around the metro station (Albury Road/Honister Avenue/Ilford Road) and on the Little Moor and its allotments.

Gangs of youths have been causing damage to property, lighting fires, threatening residents and in a couple of extreme cases there has been physical violence against residents and allotment holders.

The Residents Association has good links with our community police team but as things got significantly worse in Spring 2021 we escalated matters and sought the involvement of our councillors (Henry Gallagher, Wendy Taylor and Karen Robinson), our Member of Parliament (Catherine McKinnell), our local police sergeant (Euan Faulke), the Neighbourhood Team at Newcastle City Council and (via Catherine McKinnell) the Chief Superintendent at Northumbria Police Centre Area Command (Sav Patsalos).

At time of writing (and with fingers firmly crossed) it looks like this escalation and higher-level involvement has been beneficial as the past 2-3 weeks has seen a significant increase in police presence and a reduction in the incidence of anti-social behaviour.

The police have made several interventions including dispersal orders, alcohol confiscation, arrests and follow-ups at local schools. We are very encouraged by this but want to ensure that this sort of activity continues and so will remain in close contact with the relevant authorities.

Local traffic and Streets for People

One area that has not progressed at all during lockdown is the Streets for People project.

Residents may recall that a lot of time was spent liaising with local people and the council to come up with some solutions to the problems of high-speed traffic on Ilford Road and Moorfield as well as excessive parking by commuters using the area as a car park.

The issue of parking has been much reduced during lockdown (though it may well reoccur once everything opens back up).

However, the issue of speeding traffic has not got any better and the Association has received several communications from residents about the increase in high-speed cars, vans and lorries in our area.

It’s disappointing that the previously promised interventions have now been postponed and that the council’s focus has been on other areas such as Jesmond and Heaton.

Whilst we understand that there will always be competing priorities in this area, we will continue to put pressure on the council to recognise the issues we have locally as they are not insignificant.

One issue that has proven controversial is the closure of several bridges during lockdown. The closest bridges to our area are Stoneyhurst Road and Castles Farm Road.

The Association has not got directly involved in the debate on either of these bridge closures as they are outside our area, however we have circulated information on the consultation and encouraged residents who feel strongly on the issue to respond to the council.

Committee 2021-22

During the past year, two committee members resigned as they moved away from the area (Katherine Shipley and Ian Cavanagh).

The following members of the committee have all agreed to stand again for 2021-22 – Fiona Bruce, Jeffrey Fox, Andrew Jackson, Dawn Dunn, John Stephenson, Cornelia Moosman.

The following people have put their names forward to serve on the committee also – Michael Hutchinson, Maureen McKenna, Victoria Nemeth.

Conclusion

It has been a very difficult year for many people, and we remain uncertain as to how long lockdown restrictions (in whatever form) will continue.

However, despite this, the Residents Association continues to function, and it has been able to ensure that, where necessary, interventions are made to safeguard and promote the local area and its residents.

Our finances remain in a sound position and our links with local authorities and stakeholders remain strong and positive.

We take great pride in the area we represent and live in and will continue to do so over the next 12 months.

Nick Moore
Chair – High West Jesmond Residents’ Association
May 2021

Posted on

Stay home, Protect the NHS, Save lives

Information available

For the latest information from the NHS and the UK Government please visit:

NHS – nhs.uk/coronavirus

GOV – gov.uk/coronavirus

Statement issued

A statement has been issued from the leaders of the LA7 local authorities, the Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner, and the North of Tyne Mayor.

The following news release was issued by Newcastle City Council:

“The Prime Minister has rightly imposed a national lockdown in England, meaning we must all now stay at home except for essential reasons.

“It was vital decisive action was taken to regain control of infection rates that have been soaring across the nation, including in our own region, in recent weeks.

“We know this will come as a disappointment to our communities who have already given so much during the pandemic, but it was a step the Government simply had to take.

“We are all too aware of the mental and physical difficulties a lockdown brings, with people unable to see loved ones or do most of the activities they enjoy doing, and none of us wish to see schools closed.

“But the health of residents is the absolute priority for all of us, and we are now in a position where we can take action, prevent the NHS from becoming completely overwhelmed, and save lives.

“The regulations are clear. Stay at home unless it is absolutely necessary to do so. You can go to work if you cannot do so from home; you can shop for essentials; you can exercise; seek medical attention; escape domestic abuse; attend educational and childcare settings for those eligible; and a few other exceptional circumstances.

“Otherwise, staying at home and avoiding all contact with those outside your household or support bubble will deny this virus the opportunity to spread further. This is key if we are to prevent countless more deaths while the vaccination programme continues in earnest.

“We have argued for more support for local businesses and this morning’s announcement from the Chancellor regarding grants is welcome. But some businesses have fallen through the gaps since March, and still need additional support. We will monitor what other support our communities and businesses require.”

“Similarly, there will be many out there who require support once again during this lockdown, and we will continue to provide welfare support as we have throughout the pandemic. We will also work with the Government to ensure the necessary equipment is available to children for online learning and support our communities wherever possible.

“Hope is, however, on the horizon. Unlike when we first entered lockdown in March, we now have a weapon to fight back. The Government has set out timescales for quickly vaccinating the most vulnerable, as well as health and social care workers, and we sincerely hope this will permit the return of some freedoms when the time is right. We will be working closely with our colleagues in the NHS to support the rollout but for now, we have to play our part while the virus continues to spread.

“Please, stay at home, protect the NHS, and save lives. Thank You.”

Cllr Simon Henig, CBE, Leader, Durham County Council   
Cllr Martin Gannon, Leader, Gateshead Council  
Cllr Nick Forbes, CBE, Leader, Newcastle City Council  
Norma Redfearn CBE, Elected Mayor, North Tyneside Council  
Cllr Glen Sanderson, Leader, Northumberland County Council  
Cllr Tracey Dixon, Leader, South Tyneside Council  
Cllr Graeme Miller, Leader, Sunderland City Council   
Jamie Driscoll, North of Tyne Mayor  
Kim McGuinness, Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner  

The above news story was issued by Newcastle City Council and is available to read on the Newcastle City Council website. It has been included here for information and does not necessarily represent the views of High West Jesmond Residents’ Association. 

Posted on

Prime Minister announces national lockdown

The Prime Minister has announced a national lockdown and instructed people to stay at home to control the virus, protect the NHS and save lives.

The decision follows a rapid rise in infections, hospital admissions and case rates across the country, and our hospitals are now under more pressure than they have been at any other point throughout the pandemic.

This drastic jump in cases has been attributed to the new variant of COVID-19, which our scientists have now confirmed is between 50 and 70 per cent more transmissible.

On 4 January, there were 26,626 Covid patients in hospital in England, an increase of over 30% in one week, and the April 2020 hospital admissions peak has now been surpassed by 40%.

The case rate in England up to 29 December was 478.5 per 100k, three times higher than on 1 December when the case rate was 151.3.

On 3 Jan, 454 deaths were reported, with 4,228 over the last 7 days – a 24% increase on the previous 7 days.

This afternoon, the four UK Chief Medical Officers have advised that the COVID threat level should move from level four to level five, indicating that if action is not taken NHS capacity may be overwhelmed within 21 days.

The Prime Minister praised everyone’s collective efforts to get this virus under control, emphasising the great national effort to fight Covid. Despite this, the pressure on our NHS, rapidly rising infection rates and hospital admissions due to the new variant mean that another national lockdown is sadly necessary.

From tomorrow, people will only be allowed to leave their homes for the following reasons:

  • shop for basic necessities, for you or a vulnerable person.
  • go to work, or provide voluntary or charitable services, if you cannot reasonably do so from home.
  • exercise with your household (or support bubble) or one other person, this should be limited to once per day, and you should not travel outside your local area.
  • meet your support bubble or childcare bubble where necessary, but only if you are legally permitted to form one.
  • seek medical assistance or avoid injury, illness or risk of harm (including domestic abuse).
  • attend education or childcare – for those eligible.

From tomorrow, all primary schools, secondary schools and colleges will move to remote learning, except for the children of key workers and vulnerable children. While children are still very unlikely to be severely affected by COVID-19, the government recognises that schools must be included in the restrictions in order to have the best chance of getting the virus under control as schools can act as vectors of transmission, causing the virus to spread between households when rates are high.

Schools will be required to provide remote education for those learning at home.

Early years settings such as nurseries, alternative provision and special schools will remain open and vulnerable children and children of critical workers can continue to use registered childcare, childminders and other childcare activities.

The government is also advising the clinically extremely vulnerable to begin shielding again, and letters will be sent to individuals with advice on what this means for them.

All non-essential retail, hospitality and personal care services must close, or remain closed. Restaurants can continue delivery, takeaway or click-and-collect of food and non-alcoholic drinks, but venues will no longer be able to serve takeaway or click-and-collect alcohol.

Essential shops and garden centres can remain open. Entertainment venues and animal attractions such as zoos must close, but the outdoor areas of venues such as heritage homes and botanical gardens can remain open, to be used for exercise. Playgrounds may also remain open.

Places of worship can also remain open, but you may only visit with your household.

Indoor and outdoor sports facilities including sports courts, gyms, golf courses, swimming pools, and riding arenas must also close. Elite sport and disabled sport can continue, as can PE lessons for those children attending school.

The restrictions will come into effect tomorrow, and are expected to last until the middle of February if the situation in hospitals improve. By this point, the NHS hopes to have vaccinated everyone in the top four priority groups identified by the JCVI – including older care home residents and staff, everyone over 70, all frontline NHS and care staff and all those who are clinically extremely vulnerable.

Vaccinating the most vulnerable will protect those at highest risk from COVID-19 and this will remove a significant amount of the pressure currently facing the NHS.

Based on the latest available data, the UK has vaccinated more people than the rest of Europe combined and we will continue to accelerate our vaccination programme at pace.

Everyone should follow the new rules from now, and they will become law from 00.01 on Wednesday. Parliament will sit, largely remotely, on Wednesday to debate and vote on the measures.

The full details on what you can and cannot do are available here.

The above statement was issued by the government and can be read on the gov.uk website.

Posted on

Newcastle’s first female GP honoured

The first female GP in Newcastle who campaigned for children’s and women’s health has been commemorated when a plaque was unveiled in her memory.

Dr Ethel Williams, the first female GP in Newcastle upon Tyne, lived in Jesmond

Ethel Williams was also reputedly the first woman in the North East to drive her own car – and service it.

Jesmond resident

Williams (1863-1945) lived at 3 Osborne Terrace, Jesmond, where Lord Mayor of Newcastle Cllr David Down unveiled a plaque in her memory on Wednesday, July 18.

Among those at the unveiling were members of the Workers Educational Association which championed her case for a plaque.

Cabinet Member for Culture, Sport and Public Health, Cllr Kim McGuinness, said: “Newcastle is a city with a rich heritage and a history of striving for equality. Ethel Williams’ remarkable story is part of that.

“This year we celebrate 100 years since some women got the vote. Commemorating great women who played a part in making the city the great place it is today is part of that celebration and it’s fantastic to see Ethel Williams honoured.

“Our blue plaques are designed to draw attention to the great sons and daughters of Newcastle so future generations can learn about them and be inspired and to keep drive our great city forward.”

Plaque unveiled at 3 Osborne Terrace, Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne – photo courtesy Newcastle University

Lord Mayor of Newcastle, Cllr David Down, said: “In many respects Ethel Williams was a woman ahead of her time. She vigorously campaigned for women to get the vote and as a GP did a huge amount to improve the health and well-being of women and children.”

Set up her own GP practice

Williams attended the London School of Medicine for Women and graduated in 1891, but had to gain her internship abroad in Paris and Vienna, as women could not train in British hospitals.

Such barriers, and her belief in the need to supplement medical care with social reform, led to her active involvement in the suffragette movement. Though never militant, she withheld her taxes in 1905 – a year before she set up her own GP practice.

She co-founded the Northern Women’s Hospital in 1917 and, when she retired in 1924, she left her practice to another female doctor, Dr Mona MacNaughton. By this time there were 14 female doctors practicing in Newcastle.

She died in 1948 and Ethel Williams’ Halls of Residence was opened in her memory in 1950 at Newcastle University.

Williams was an active member of the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies. A banner from the Mud March in which she took part is on display in the Ethel Williams Collection in Newcastle University’s Robinson Library.

She was also a member of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. In 1915 she was due to travel to a conference in The Hague but was prevented from doing so by the Government.

Williams went on to become a Justice of the Peace, a member of Newcastle Education Committee and co-founder of the Monkton Home for Mental Defectives, the Northern Women’s Hospital and the Medical Women’s Federation.

 

Web Design by Aldwalk | © High West Jesmond Residents’ Association 2024