Greater Manchester Update

[SistemaAddict]

Has there been one? I thought the situation was being reviewed today but I can't find any info anywhere except Oldham is on the brink of full lockdown but the Mayor thinks it's not necessary. I'm right on the outskirts of GM and hoping for news as cases have risen in general but schools go back in less than 2 weeks.

Have the rates in Darwen gone down then ? They were quite high a few weeks ago ,I keep checking my local news paper websit e( Bolton news) but it's very contradictory

Totally against race-blaming in this context - correlation isn't causation- and I want to make that clear. Re -reading my post where I referred to 'the community' I meant Oldham as a whole and wasn't using the term pejoratively to stealth identify any sub-community on the basis of race, colour or creed.
With rates falling and the over-estimate of covid related deaths hitting the front pages this morning, the comments from this consultant in Birmingham seem like common sense.
Dr Ron Daniels, an intensive care consultant in the West Midlands, said we can't "let our guard" down against the virus yet and it has the potential to be a an "horrific illness".
However, he said Covid-19 is a regional rather than city-wide problem in Birmingham and localised outbreaks should be managed as they come up without plunging all residents into lockdown.
especially

Also in stockport and HUGELY frustrated. We are nowhere near bloody Oldham and our rates are lower many other places not in lockdown.
We are sticking to the rules but I would say the majoritycarenot- it's a joke.

We're hearing it from Andy Burnham and the GMCA because it's a local issue and a local decision. Central government got the flack when the local lockdown was announced late at night but my mole tells me that they were waiting on a decision from Burnham and GMCA, who were at odds over a local as opposed to region wide lockdown precisely because of the varied infection rates across the region. Central government will only step in if there's a risk which, for whatever reason, regional authorities are failing to address. Basically no one wants to be the one to tell people to stay in or shut their businesses - the political optics are bad for a start, and the local economy suffers. No politician wants to be linked to that message if they can avoid it. Looking at you, Andy Burnham - grow a pair, and deal with the issue forensically not with a sledgehammer.

@Frazzled2207

Andy Burnham has tweeted that there will be an announcement of some sort toda. I think they have a meeting late on Thursday but now have Learnt that late night announcements aren’t the best idea.

I’m in stockport and am so pissed off about the no going into houses rule esp as our cases are much lower than many other places where you can. So many people I know rely on grandparents to pick up after school etc. Many I know are going to have to do it anyway.

Many people I know are relying on family care now. I'm in GM, looked after a relative's child the other day in the absence of other options, and I certainly didn't do it in the park in the pissing rain with no toilet facilities. I was 100% justified in doing so and I'll do it again if needed.

@Prettybluepigeons
Fist bump to you is very frustrating

@PiataMaiNei
Yes I think I will have to tbh I don’t really care if I get fined. It’s also grossly unfair on grandparents who have really struggled to maintain a relationship with grandchildren over the last few months. Yes I know that they are in many ways more at risk but my own parents live for their grandchildren and very little else tbh.

Stricter social restrictions?! No meeting in parks now?! Have they been to Oldham, Rochdale or North Manchester? Why they expect people to adhere to these new measures when nobody pays any notice to the existing measures is beyond me. It's crazy.

It's raining and miserable here today as it is quite often. People have never socialised outside, it'll make no difference.

@noimkaren
Andy B seems to be saying that it’s a central government decision that he is supporting but am fairly sure there is more to it than that.
I am generally a fan of his but imposing these rules across all of GM, for a prolonged period (I was supportive at first) isn’t the right way to go about it and is not going to help his re-election prospects

We are nowhere near bloody Oldham and our rates are lower many other places not in lockdown.

Try having an Oldham postcode but living in an area that has had negligible cases throughout the whole pandemic

@Frazzled2207 fully understand and think your 100% right to do so. my grandma lives for my kids, her great grand children.

They need to shut down the areas with the highest rates and help those areas with additional funding if that is what is needed.

@SueEllenMishke I'm in the same position. So frustrated with it.

Link to local stats twitter.com/AndyBurnhamGM/status/1296094090388475904/photo/1

Frankly it's a pretty meaningless table and doesn't tell us much, beyond the fact that Oldham's infection rate is very much higher than everywhere else.
How many tests have been carried out in each local authority area?
How many tests per head of population in each area?
What's the comparative rate of testing per head of population across each of the areas ?

[quote Willbob]@SueEllenMishke I'm in the same position. So frustrated with it.[/quote]
Us too.
We've both WFH full time with a 5 year old who needed to be homeschooled and we've done this with zero childcare- we had been about to start using grandparents and then the additional restrictions came in.

It's hard to stay positive and upbeat

[quote Frazzled2207]@Prettybluepigeons
Fist bump to you is very frustrating

@PiataMaiNei
Yes I think I will have to tbh I don’t really care if I get fined. It’s also grossly unfair on grandparents who have really struggled to maintain a relationship with grandchildren over the last few months. Yes I know that they are in many ways more at risk but my own parents live for their grandchildren and very little else tbh.[/quote]
If you need to do it, do it. The restrictions are unenforceable and were very obviously dreamed up by people who have no idea what it is not to be able to afford a nanny.

The top 3 places for high rates of infection out of these counties seem to have always been
Bradford (West Yorks)
Blackburn (Lancs)
Oldham (Greater Manc)

I suppose the problem is that people in the counties affected might work or travel in/ or to the other places. Someone in Oldham might work or have relatives in Bradford, or Blackburn and vice versa. Using the same services on the M62 or at work, potentially spreading it around between all 3 counties

The M62 is a very busy route in the north of England and some of the outbreak hot spots in factories have been close to it.

If you need to do it, do it. The restrictions are unenforceable and were very obviously dreamed up by people who have no idea what it is not to be able to afford a nanny.
I agree , I've said the same if you have to work and need relatives to help with childcare especially during the holidays there is nothing you can do .
The government are so out of touch if they think a regular person can afford a nanny .
Tbh I think the increased restrictions for oldham will be ignored anyway .

Probably. It's not like there's been an increase in childcare provision there to assist those who must now go back into work and who previously relied on family.

@islockdownoveryet Exactly. My company have been pretty flexible, but it is a national company where, for the most part, people are getting back to normal. They have said flexibility won't be offered from September, just as I need it as grandparent childcare isn't allowed. We've got the tough decision of whether to break the rules or take the financial hit of reducing hours to cover it.

For those saying they have an OL postcode, the Oldham restrictions are only relevant to those in the Oldham Council area. The OL postcode goes way beyond the council administrative boundary

Is the government biased against the North? I live about 40 minutes from Northampton and our local news is reporting that Northampton has the highest local rate in the country - but it hasn't been locked down!

For those saying they have an OL postcode, the Oldham restrictions are only relevant to those in the Oldham Council area. The OL postcode goes way beyond the council administrative boundary

We're in an Oldham Council area unfortunately.
Our ward has had hardly any cases throughout the whole pandemic- the numbers are so low that the figures aren't high enough for reporting purposes.

I'm furious

I live in a borough where the restrictions are now no meeting up with anyone, anywhere even though my area doesn't have many cases either.
I know lots of parents who have been meeting up for social distance walks and letting children burn energy off (children not necessarily distanced) but now we are not meant to even go to parks. Yet in under two weeks there will be 30 children all crammed into tiny classrooms. I think lock down would have been detrimental for the small businesses near me but also now worry about the effect on mental health in the area. Fingers crossed figures drop soon.

On a more positive note the MEN is saying the below which gives some of us hope

Meanwhile in a departure from the government’s existing processes, it is understood that from next week councils and MPs will be asked to recommend any individual neighbourhoods that could be taken out of existing restrictions if their case numbers are low enough.

[quote Frazzled2207]@noimkaren
Andy B seems to be saying that it’s a central government decision that he is supporting but am fairly sure there is more to it than that.
I am generally a fan of his but imposing these rules across all of GM, for a prolonged period (I was supportive at first) isn’t the right way to go about it and is not going to help his re-election prospects[/quote]
Burnham isn't forcing people to go to all the raves and parties through the week in the area though is he? He's repeatedly warned against it but still the idiots carry on. Blame them, not him.

Is the government biased against the North? I live about 40 minutes from Northampton and our local news is reporting that Northampton has the highest local rate in the country - but it hasn't been locked down

I think it's more about a sustained rise over weeks that doesn't recover, rather than just a day or two

Some places do temporarily have a higher rate but it's more of a blip and goes down again soon afterward. Whereas the areas in local lockdown saw a steady rise over a long period of time.

PHE published their weekly surveiilance report today, It includes as set of detailed map showing cases rates for the last two weeks and the two weeks previous to that for every council area on the "watched" list.

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/910975/Contain_framework_lower_tier_local_authority_watchlist_-maps_by_LSOA-_21_August_2020.pdf

plus details on testing etc (although the graph axis scale makes these difficult to read sometimes).

The link above has the full set but have attached Oldham as an example