News
Families to be able to visit elderly relatives in care homes soon, Health Secretary says
Just in…
Health Secretary Matt Hancock told ITV News the government will be reopening care homes for visits again soon.
Since mid-March, visiting in care homes has been banned keeping thousands of people away from their elderly relatives for almost four months. Leading charities have said the mental and physical health of residents is suffering due to ‘enforced separation’.
Mr Hancock told ITV News on Thursday: “We’ve been very very careful to ensure that visitors don’t bring coronavirus back into a care home but in the next few days we will be setting out how COVID secure visiting can happen in care homes.
“How we can have more visits of loved ones in a way that is very careful and in a way that keeps care homes safe.”
He added: “I very much hope that in the next few days we’ll be able to make this change. We’ve got to make sure it works for each local area but I hope we can make that change very soon.”
During the conversation, Hancock refused to apologise for Boris Johnson’s claims that care homes were at fault for coronavirus deaths. Hancock did say that social care workers had gone to ‘extraordinary lengths’ to keep people safe throughout the pandemic.
Hancock also appeared to suggest that he would lobby for a pay rise.
Regarding a second wave, the Health Secretary said: “Well I very much hope there won’t be one. People talk about the second wave as if its something that is inevitable.”
Hancock reflected on the worst moment of the pandemic saying: “The hardest time without a doubt was after we’d brought in the lockdown, when the numbers were still going up, and we knew that the impact of the lockdown would have an impact in a couple of weeks’ time but we didn’t know how much of an impact.”
The update on care home visits comes as leading charities join forces to call on the government to allow relatives of dementia patients to be treated as key workers.
The BBC reports that Dementia UK and Alzheimer’s Society have signed a letter to the Health Secretary calling on visits to resume safely and relatives to be given ‘key worker’ access to care homes and coronavirus testing.
During the pandemic, there have been 5,404 excess deaths, which is a 52.5% increase compared with the five-year average in people with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease in England and Wales, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Prof Martin Green, the chief executive of Care England, said a balance needed to be struck between allowing family visits and protecting care home residents from further coronavirus outbreaks.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Families are a really important part of care delivery but at the same time you have to be really, really cautious because, as people know, care homes have been really badly affected during this pandemic.
“People living in care homes are probably at the highest risk, so if there is an outbreak of Covid-19, it has serious and very tragic consequences, so I think we have to balance the need for people to engage with their relatives and families but also we have a responsibility for the protection and safety of the people in care homes.”
News
Oasis announce huge reunion tour as Liam and Noel Gallagher ‘make peace’
The news we’ve all been waiting for!
After years of will-they-won’t-they speculation, Oasis are officially BACK together for a reunion tour.
The Gallagher brothers have put aside their differences in the name of music, making thousands of fans extremely happy in the process.
The band teased the news on their socials over the weekend, posting a video on Sunday morning with today’s date (Tuesday, August 27th) and the time 8am.
And now shows have been announced for multiple dates in the UK and Ireland, with tickets going live this Saturday, August 31st.
The legendary Mancunian rockers will take to the stage next summer, with gigs in Cardiff, London, Edinburgh, Dublin and, of course, Manchester.
15 years after splitting, the band confirmed they would be back for 14 shows, saying: “The guns have fallen silent. The stars have aligned. The great wait is over. Come see. It will not be televised”.
The gigs will be Oasis’s ‘only shows in Europe next year’, with tickets on sale this Saturday at 8am in Ireland and 9am in the UK.
The Oasis 2025 tour dates in full:
July
4th – Cardiff, Principality Stadium
5th – Cardiff, Principality Stadium
11th – Manchester, Heaton Park
12th – Manchester, Heaton Park
19th – Manchester, Heaton Park
20th – Manchester, Heaton Park
25th – London, Wembley Stadium
26th – London, Wembley Stadium
August
2nd – London, Wembley Stadium
3rd – London, Wembley Stadium
8th – Edinburgh, Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
9th – Edinburgh, Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
16th – Dublin, Croke Park
17th – Dublin, Croke Park
You can grab your tickets HERE.
News
Stagecoach hiring over 100 new bus drivers for Bee Network with £31k salaries
Fancy a career change?
Stagecoach Manchester is hiring over 100 new bus drivers to work from its Oldham depot, following the second phase of the Bee Network launch in March.
You can apply for a range of roles, from positions with no experience required to fully qualified bus drivers.
Successful applicants will receive full training as part of the job, and trainees will get paid to train. Then after only 12 months’ service at Stagecoach, drivers can expect to earn up to £16 per hour, which equates to £31.6K per year, before overtime.
As well as that, drivers that already hold a PCV licence may be eligible to receive a £1,200 joining bonus.
Stagecoach
There’s also a host of other benefits available to all Stagecoach employees, like 28 days paid holiday, generous pension and free Stagecoach bus travel for successful applicants and a companion.
Rob Jones, Managing Director at Stagecoach Manchester said: “Expanding our offering in Oldham means we’ll be investing more in the economy and supporting our local community, as well as strengthening our workforce.
“Whether you’re looking for a career change or you’re a fully qualified, experienced bus driver, there’s a role for everyone here in Oldham.
“We’re looking for personable and dedicated drivers who are ready to help us build on the success of the Bee Network and connect the people of Oldham and Greater Manchester with the places and people that are important to them.”
Stagecoach
Phil Cornwall, bus driver at Stagecoach Manchester, said: “I’ve been a driver at Stagecoach for 25 years and I couldn’t recommend it more.
“From the perks to the people to the passengers, it really is a great place to work.”
To apply, head to the Stagecoach website HERE.
Two men have now been charged with murder, following the discovery of a human torso in Kersal Dale.
As well as that, more suspected human remains were also discovered this morning, Monday April 29th, in an alleyway close to the railway lines off Worsley Road, Eccles.
This follows earlier discoveries of human remains over the past three weeks, at Kersal Dale, Blackleach Reservoir and Colliery Wood, all in Salford.
Greater Manchester Police
Michal Jaroslaw Polchowski (25/04/1956) and Marcin Majerkiewicz (10/04/1982) both of Worsley Road, Eccles, have been charged with murder.
They are set to appear at Tameside Magistrates Court this afternoon.
While formal identification is still ongoing, the remains found at Kersal Dale are believed to be of a local man in his 60s. The remains found at the other three locations are still to be tested, but police are confident they belong to the same victim.
ACC Sarah Jackson said: “We have had large numbers of officers, staff and specialists working diligently on this investigation over the last three weeks. It has been very much a large, collective effort, with the victim and family at the heart of it from the outset.
“We have specially trained officers deployed to support the family as they come to terms with this tragic news. They are aware of this morning’s further discovery and will continue to be kept up to date with how we are progressing.
“Despite the charges brought today, our work is far from over.
“The scenes we already have established in Bury and Salford will remain in place for much of this week whilst our searches and enquiries continue. Local officers will continue to patrol the impacted areas to provide reassurance.
“We will continue following every line of enquiry to recover and reunite the victim with his family, bringing a dignified end to this terrible scenario.
“I’d like to thank the communities of Salford and beyond for their cooperation throughout this investigation. I know this incident has come as a shock, and the support we’ve had from those in the area is very much appreciated.”
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