Local news that may affect Eydon residents

ELECTION NEWS FROM WEST NORTHANTS COUNCIL

/in News/by Eydon Parish Council

Potential candidates urged to find out more at elections briefing

People thinking of standing as a candidate in the West Northamptonshire Council or town and parish elections are encouraged to join in a briefing taking place soon.

West Northamptonshire CouncilOn Thursday, 6 May residents across Daventry, Northampton and South Northants will vote to elect councillors to the new unitary authority, which will go live on 1 April this year, replacing their existing district, borough and county councils. Elections are also due to take place that day to elect representatives for up to 165 town/parish councils across West Northamptonshire.

People thinking about becoming a candidate or acting as an agent for either of these elections is urged to attend an online briefing session on Wednesday, 3 March, from 5.30pm.

The session, which will be held on Zoom, will cover the nominations process, key electoral information, dates and deadlines as well as setting out important details about the Covid safety measures being planned for candidates and agents.

Those wishing to attend should email electoralservices.ddc@westnorthants.gov.uk or call 01327 302326. The session will be recorded and available on YouTube later for those unable to attend.

Anna Earnshaw, Returning Officer for the West Northamptonshire elections and the Chief Executive of the new Council, said: “Anyone thinking of standing as a candidate or acting as their agent in the spring elections should attend this briefing.

“It will provide them with everything they need to know about taking part, including how to submit nominations, key dates and deadlines, as well as important information about Covid restrictions and the measures we’ll be taking to minimise risks from the pandemic to voters.”

Polling arrangements for West Northamptonshire and parish elections are currently being organised jointly by elections officers in Daventry District, South Northants and Northampton who will be brought together on 1 April as part of the new Council. To find out more about registering to vote, plus information on applying for postal and proxy votes, please visit your local district/borough website.

Coronavirus Vaccine for Over 70’s

/in COVID-19, News/by Eydon Parish Council

People aged 70 or older in England who have not yet had their coronavirus vaccine but would like to are being asked to contact the NHS.

A national booking system can be accessed online or people can call 119 free of change between 7am and 11pm.

Online Arthritis Action Groups

/in News/by Eydon Parish Council

Arthritis Action Groups are an opportunity for people with arthritis to talk with others and share their tips on how to manage their arthritis and stay active whilst at home, and we actively welcome new attendees. We discuss a variety of self-management techniques. Participants will need to contact Arthritis Action directly for the log in instructions for the meeting, and they have produced ‘How To’ guides for those not familiar with using Zoom.

East Anglia Groups:

Afternoon: 16th February 2pm

Evening: 4th March 6pm

Morning: 5th March 10:30 am

For joining details see http://www.arthritisaction.org.uk/media-centre/events

St Nicholas Church – Snowdrops & Marmalade

/in News/by Eydon Parish Council

Sadly we are not able to hold our snowdrop teas at St Nicholas Church this year, but the snowdrops don’t understand lockdown restrictions and are beginning to blossom.

St Nicholas Church, EydonDo take a walk through the churchyard in the next month and enjoy them as they emerge from the snow.

However we are busy making marmalade as we have done in previous years, and will be holding a marmalade sale in the next few weeks. WATCH THIS SPACE!

In the meantime if you have spare 1lb jars with lids that are suitable for marmalade, we would be very grateful for them.

Please leave them on one of the freezers in the garage at Oriel House, 59 High Street.

Sue Yates Churchwarden, Tel : 01327 260503

URGENT REQUEST FROM BYFIELD MEDICAL CENTRE

/in COVID-19, News/by Eydon Parish Council

COVID VACCINATIONS – OVER 80’s

Covid first vaccinations should by now have been offered to all Byfield medical centre patients aged 80 or over.
If you or anyone you know who is a registered patient in the 80 or over category, and has been overlooked, they should at once contact Byfield surgery so as to arrange an appointment.

Tracy Rymer

Practice Manager

Parish Council Elections – 6th May 2021

/in News/by Eydon Parish Council

epc logo teal small

Ever thought of being a parish councillor? We are holding elections!

Expressions of interest are welcomed from anyone who is over 18 years old and is an elector of the parish.

As a councillor representing your community you will help keep it a great place to live and work.

You will be supported in your role and will be expected to undertake training. You should be comfortable working electronically, with a positive outlook, a “can-do” attitude, and be willing to work as part of a dedicated team of volunteers.

Eydon Parish Council currently meets in the evening on the 2nd Tuesday of the month. If you care about your community and would like to help make a real difference then why not…

Become a Parish Councillor!

If you are interested in joining the council, please contact:

Mr Andy Hartley
Clerk to Eydon Parish Council
Beech House
17 Deans Row
Gayton
Northants
NN7 3HA

01604 858360 / 07791906773
email: clerk@eydon-village.co.uk

 

You must:

be at least 18 years old and be a British citizen, or an eligible Commonwealth citizen and meet at least one of the following four qualifications:

  1. You are, and will continue to be, registered as a local government elector for the parish/community in which you wish to stand from the day of your nomination onwards.
  2. You have occupied as owner or tenant any land or other premises in the parish/community area during the whole of the 12 months before the day of your nomination and the day of election.
  3. Your main or only place of work during the 12 months prior to the day of your nomination and the day of election has been in the parish/community area.
  4. You have lived in the parish/community area or within three miles of it during the whole of the 12 months before the day of your nomination and the day of election.

Byfield Medical Centre – COVID-19 Vaccinations

/in News/by Eydon Parish Council

COVID VACCINES
We are receiving up to 80 calls a day from patients asking when they will get their vaccine or how can they move up the priority list. We are currently not able to vaccinate patients.

All our patients are currently being vaccinated at Weedon Medical Centre.

Currently the only people being vaccinated are the over 80’s, people in care homes and their carers and front line NHS Staff.

We can not ‘bump’ you up the list, we also CAN NOT tell when you are likely to be vaccinated – sorry we do not know when the vaccine will be available more widely.

Weedon is vaccinating approximately 1,000 patients per week, approximately 200 of those are our patients so you can see this is going to be a slow process until the government either opens a mass vaccination site locally or allows practices to vaccinate their own patients.
Calling the surgery will not I am sorry to say get you vaccinated more quickly and is blocking the phone lines.

We understand the frustration and uncertainty and would love to be able to roll out the vaccination programme here. We hope this will be a possibility in the near future.

COVID-19 vaccination phishing SMS text message

/in COVID-19, News/by Eydon Parish Council

There has been an increasing trend of COVID-19 phishing and SMS text message scams, prompting the NCSC to publish materials to raise awareness (see attached leaflet).

As it stands, there are five key trends:

 Fake URL links claiming to redirect you to GOV.UK website to claim relief payments.
 Lockdown fines suggesting you have breached government regulations.
 Offers of health supplements that will prevent you from being infected.
 Financial support that appears to be from your bank.
 Fake text messages claiming to be from the NHS advising individuals that they are eligible to apply for vaccine, but requiring sensitive data such as financial information to make a payment.

To protect yourself and those close to you:

 Keep abreast of the news: As awful as it may seem, knowledge of attack methods and techniques will hone the ability to separate fact from fiction.
 Never click links within emails or text messages: Links take you to fake websites.
 Never call back using an unrecognised SMS phone number: This could lead you to speaking directly with a criminal or criminal organisation.
 Use official channels: For example, use GOV.UK to find relevant information about COVID support and support services. Once the official communication channels are known you can verify information and find out what the next steps are.
 Guard your data: A legitimate organisation won’t make unsolicited requests for sensitive information or payments. For example, the vaccine is only available on the NHS for free to people in priority groups. Use the official NHS app only available from Google Play or Apple Store for more.
 Don’t give into pressure: If someone tries to coerce you into giving them sensitive information, end the conversation.
 Watch your digital footprint. Cyber criminals will use social media accounts and relevant websites to research you and make their scams more effective. Request the removal of unnecessary information and check your privacy settings for every account.

Reporting
Please report all Fraud and Cybercrime to Action Fraud by calling 0300 123 2040 or online.
Forward suspicious emails to: report@phishing.gov.uk.
Report SMS scams by forwarding the original message to 7726 (spells SPAM on the keypad).

Byfield Medical Centre – Lockdown Procedures

/in COVID-19, News/by Eydon Parish Council

From Tracey Rymer – Practice Manager.

We will still be triaging patients by phone and will only call into the surgery those that the clinician feels needs to be seen.

From tomorrow all medication will be delivered by our volunteers. You will NOT be able to come to the medical centre to collect this. Deliveries will be like they were in March, on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The front door of the medical centre will be closed, and there will be a bell to attract the attention of the reception staff who will come and let you in after checking you have an appointment.

As we are sure you are aware the number of COVID cases in our area is rising sharply – please follow government advice and stay safe everyone.

All Change for Councils in Northamptonshire

/in News/by Eydon Parish Council

Local government in Northamptonshire is changing.

The existing system, which has been in place since the 1970s, is like a three-tier cake.  The bottom layer is parish and town councils which typically cover one village or town.  The middle layer is borough and district councils, which are responsible for things like planning applications, collecting the bins, tourism, and dealing with benefits.  The top layer is the county council, which is responsible for things like social services, education, and highways.

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From 1 April 2021 the top two layers of the cake are being replaced with one layer, known as unitary councils.  There will be two in Northamptonshire: North Northamptonshire Council, and West Northamptonshire Council.  Parish and town councils remain as they are.

West Northamptonshire Council West Northamptonshire Council will cover the area currently covered by Daventry District Council, Northampton Borough Council, and South Northamptonshire Council.  The area contains the towns of Northampton, Daventry, Towcester and Brackley and nearly two hundred villages and hamlets.  West Northamptonshire Council will be one of the larger unitary councils in England.  It will be responsible for all the services currently being provided in the area by the district, borough, and county councils.

The main reason for replacing the district, borough and county councils with unitary councils is to save money.  Northamptonshire County Council had well-publicised financial issues in 2017 and 2018, which led to a government inspection of the council.  The inspector’s report recommended that creating unitary councils was the best solution.

Most people will not notice any difference, certainly in the first few years of the unitary councils.  In fact, great efforts are being made to ensure that is the case.  For example, the lorry collecting the rubbish might have a different logo on it, but the bins will still be collected.  Council services will continue as normal, and any changes will be gradual.

From 2021 you will see three lines on your council tax bill.  You will pay an amount for the parish or town council that looks after your village or town, an amount for Northamptonshire Police, and an amount for West Northamptonshire Council for all the council services it provides.  The amount you pay to each body is set by that body.

West Northamptonshire Council will have 93 councillors, who will be chosen at the local elections on 6 May 2021.  Some will be people who have been district, borough, and county councillors before; others will be new.  Anyone over 18 and living in West Northamptonshire can put themselves forward to be a councillor.   The councillors elected in 2021 will serve a four-year term of office and may seek re-election in 2025.

Council meetings are held in public, and all the information, reports, and papers for the meetings are published on the council’s web site.  Councils are open and democratic bodies and are accountable to the people they serve.

If you are interested to find out more about the changes happening to local government in Northamptonshire please visit https://futurenorthantswest.org/.