Health

Sefton Council, Sefton Advocacy, NHS South Sefton Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and NHS Southport and Formby CCG have come together this week to celebrate Dementia Action Week, which runs from the 17^th-23^rd May.

The aim of the week is to raise awareness and encourage action around those living with dementia and those people who care for them.

In October 2019, thanks to the work of Sefton’s Dementia Action Alliance (DAA), the borough was officially recognised by The Alzheimer’s Society as ‘working towards becoming dementia friendly’. This status means that Sefton is a place where people with dementia are understood, respected and supported.

Sefton Council, Sefton Advocacy, NHS South Sefton CCG and NHS Southport and Formby CCG are encouraging people this week to understand how they can support those people living with dementia in our community in order to make our borough the most welcoming, understanding and supportive place it can be for those living with dementia.

Dementia Friendly Sefton are a group of organisations and individuals who are determined to maintain and improve Sefton’s ‘Dementia Friendly’ status.

Take a look at how they have been supporting people living with dementia

Dementia Training

Practical Support

Emotional Support

Support for Carers

Support from the CCG

The full video is on our YouTube Channel

Cllr Paul Cummins, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Chair of Dementia Friendly Sefton said:

“I am so proud to celebrate Dementia Action Week and I take this opportunity to thank the huge number of organisations from across Sefton that help create a place where people with dementia are understood, respected and supported.

“The world can be a confusing and sometimes frightening place for people with dementia, but by making small changes to the way we usually do things, we can make that world much brighter. I encourage everyone in Sefton to take some time to consider how they can become more dementia friendly.”

Justine Shenton, Sefton Advocacy, Sefton Older Persons Forum Coordinator said:

“It is important to raise awareness this Dementia Action Week; both of the condition and how people can help make those people living with dementia more supported and understood.

“I’m proud to be a part of Dementia Friendly Sefton and I know we will continue to work towards making our community a better place for people living with dementia and in doing so, enable them to live the lives they choose to live.”

 

Fiona Taylor, Chief Officer of NHS South Sefton CCG and NHS Southport and Formby CCG, said:

“We are pleased to have been working closely with our partners who provide services and activities for those living with dementia, to increase our support in recent years, enabling them to better plan and deliver valuable services in our communities.

“As CCG’s we have also undergone dementia friendly training in order to fully embrace this important agenda and champion this in our borough.”

“As we start to look forward to a more hopeful future as lockdown restrictions ease, it’s important that we continue to support our partners in helping residents transition back into what will hopefully be a more interactive and sociable local community and helping patients and their carers to truly ‘live well’ with dementia.”

For more information, visit the Alzheimer’s Society website

/ends

With Step 3 of the Government’s Covid roadmap to lockdown easing coming into effect today, Sefton Council’s Environmental Health Team is reminding the Borough’s businesses and their customers to follow the new guidelines.

From today, people can meet friends and family indoors again with a maximum of six people, or two households.

Also, restaurants, cafes and pubs can serve people indoors again, with the same restrictions on numbers in place. Other indoor venues such as cinemas, children’s play areas, and hotels are also allowed to re-open.

Precautions

Cllr Paulette Lappin, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Regulatory, Compliance and Corporate Services said:

“While it’s great news that we’ve moved into the next stage of lockdown relaxations, and we all want to make the most of them, it’s essential that we stick to all the precautions including the rule of six.

“As we have seen with the rise in cases over the last week and the emergence of the variant first identified in India, COVID-19 is still very much present in Sefton and distancing, wearing face coverings where required and frequent thorough handwashing remain important to keeping ourselves and others safe.”

Up to 30 people can now mix outside from and people will can to attend outdoor events. Numbers will be limited numbers depending on capacity. At indoor venues, customers need to remain seated while ordering, eating and drinking help reduce the risk of Covid-19.

Complying

Cllr Lappin continued:

“Our Environmental Health team are reporting that the vast majority of Sefton’s businesses, bars and restaurants have been doing a great job to meet the requirements and keep their staff and their customers safe. And customers have been doing their bit and complying with restrictions.

“But if any local businesses want any advice or support from our Environmental Health team, they can contact them at ETSContact@sefton.gov.uk or by calling 0345 140 0345.”

Sefton Council has also been supporting the Borough’s businesses by provide help to secure PPE and hand sanitiser and put safety measures in place. The Council has also provided over £70 million of financial support grant funding to local businesses during the pandemic as well as around £270,000 in grants for the Borough’s taxi drivers.

Vaccinated

Cllr Lappin also reiterated the importance of people getting vaccinated when they are offered a jab. And she reminded those who are out and about and who are going to work taking regular rapid coronavirus tests to make sure they aren’t accidentally passing on the COVID-19 virus because they are one of those people who does not have symptoms.

She added:
“Because around a third of us don’t show the tell-tale coronavirus symptoms of a new persistent cough, a high temperature or a loss of sense of taste or smell, despite being infected with coronavirus regular testing is vital.

“Rapid tests involve taking a throat & nasal swab, dropping the sample into the container supplied, and can provide a result in as little as 30 minutes.

“They are available from 8am to 8pm, seven days a week at the former H Samuels unit in Bootle Strand and at Southport’s Splash World. And, home test kits are widely available, from test centres, from all Sefton’s pharmacies as well as online from www.gov.uk/order-coronavirus-rapid-lateral-flow-tests.

Variant

“Also, I would ask everyone aged over 16 who lives, works or studies in Formby, where cases of the India variant have been found, and anyone who has visited any venue in Formby over the last two weeks to be tested at one of the dedicated test sites that opened on Friday.”

Local, dedicated coronavirus testing has been introduced in Sefton’s Formby area to identify the Indian variant.”

Mobile, drive-through test centres have been set up at Deansgate Lane Park in Formby (L37 3LF) and at Ainsdale Hope on Sandringham Road (PR8 2PJ), and there is a walk-through test centre at Sefton Professional Development Centre (PDC) on Park Lane (L37 6EW).

The Deansgate drive-through test centre is open from 9am to 4pm Monday to Friday, and the PDC on Park Lane is open between 9am and 4pm seven days a week. The test centre at Ainsdale is open from 9am to 8pm seven days a week.

Appointments are not needed for tests at any of these centres.

More about testing in Sefton.