Anyone in the North East?

[PennyDreadfuI]

Gateshead has just been added to the govt watchlist and Newcastle is on amber alert. Sunderland have had over 200 cases in the past seven days.

Are we next for a local lockdown? What do you think it will entail? Given Newcastle's reputation as a party city I'm guessing restricted hours for bars maybe - they were packed to the rafters over the August bank holiday weekend, which may account for lots of the new cases.

Place marking. Co Durham here too. I agree with what @Ranunculi says.

I rely on grandparents for childcare as DS hates nursery (I make him go one day a week!) And used all my leave in the summer lockdown. Very worried today.

And the students and rule flouting eastern Europeans where I live can fuck off. It's them doing this, they are so selfish

Honestly, I think it's more likely a combination of EOTHO, schools going back and people returning from holiday abroad. I live close to Newcastle airport and during lockdown the skies were empty, it was quite eerie. Now there are loads of flights every day and they're mainly coming from holiday destinations according to Flightradar. Lots of those people will be getting straight on the metro to get wherever they're going which won't be helping.

Also most of the students aren't back yet so the recent spike it won't be their fault.

I worry about the poor staff losing their jobs if pubs etc are forced to close again and there's no furlough this time. DD lost her job at the start of the last lockdown - she was working in a cafe to support herself for her masters which she was due to start about now. She still hasn't been able to find a job despite graduating with a first from Newcastle this year. There's absolutely nothing out there.

@Thiswillbeinteresting yes! Booting them all back to school and nursery first thing tomorrow, I was kind and let them have today because my eldest hates last minute change and I couldn't deal with the meltdown it would cause. DS1 is gutted and says he's not going, DD1 is thrilled she gets to see her friends, DS2 doesn't want to wear trousers again, and youngest DD wants to take a pack of yoghurts in for her teacher.

I've got to go to the shops for some things for tea, I wonder if it'll be heaving after the announcement.

Yeah, I need to head to the shops, this morning. Desperately need new trainers because I wore out all my comfy, supportive ones during the spring and summer and I need something better for my feet if I'm going to be regularly pounding the pavements with bags of shopping, again.

Honestly, I think it's more likely a combination of EOTHO, schools going back and people returning from holiday abroad.

I agree. It'll also be people going back to work, loads of people I know who were working from home have gone back to the office now schools and childcare are back so all those people are mixing at work and travelling on the buses and metros.

Some of those people racing home from specific destinations to beat the quarantine after announcements from the government will have brought it back with them and because they managed to get back in the UK ten minutes before the deadline they've had opportunity to spread it instead of having to quarantine. When the government makes those sorts of announcements I wish they would put a shorter notice period on it "with immediate effect you must now quarantine when returning from these countries", it would stop the racing back.

I think the rise in numbers has been a case of too much eased and too close to the previous easement, and poor management of the restrictions that were in place, it needed to have been spaced out a little bit more.

Darlington isn't going to be included in these measures. Seems a bit strange!

Frigging hell. Got back from taking kids to school, sat down with a cuppa to read the news. Too early for wine?

I'm off to the shops too - just the weekly food shop but I've a feeling it's going to be a bit manic. Last time I was in Asda Gosforth loads of stuff had sold out (pasta, canned goods, toilet roll) - I'm hoping it's because the students are coming back and stocking up and not because of panic buying but honestly, I think I'm kidding myself.

I wonder if we'll have to start queueing for supermarkets again? It was ok in the spring/early summer but it won't be much fun when the weather turns.

@SabrinaTheTeenageBitch

Frigging hell. Got back from taking kids to school, sat down with a cuppa to read the news. Too early for wine?

I'll have a large one since you're offering!

I'm going to either Asda Blyth, Asda Cramlington, or Morrisons at Killingworth, haven't decided yet, but I'll let you know if it was busy or not.

Too early for wine?

What happens in lockdown, stays in lockdown. That includes day drinking

Morning peeps, just heard in the beeb Matt Hancock is due to make announcement at 11:30 today.

IMO people were getting too bold. They are desperate to get back to normality and they fail to realise that just because they want to, doesn’t mean it’s safe to do so. They’re bending the rules and looking for loopholes instead of just being sensible. For months I’ve been watching people meeting up in groups of more than six, because “six is only a guideline, the law says 30”. This is probably a large part of the reason why the law has now been changed to six. But I’m still seeing people saying “we’ll book two separate restaurant tables and just happen to be sitting beside each other”, or “we’re exempt from the rule of six because we are a club, so we are allowed to meet in a Covid secure venue”. The local am dram has even been rehearsing a panto and insisting they’re allowed because they are a club. So I’m not surprised that further lockdowns are happening.

@thatwouldbeanecumenicalmatter

Morning peeps, just heard in the beeb Matt Hancock is due to make announcement at 11:30 today.

Is he resigning?

:)

I've got people on my Facebook from Hartlepool/Middlesbrough
The people from Sunderland/Durham are just saying they will go to friends in Hartlepool /Middlesbrough (as they aren't breaking the rules )
This isn't going to go well I can tell

@AlecTrevelyan006
We can but hope

From The Guardian:
On the Today programme this morning the Newcastle city council leader Nick Forbes said his team had sent proposals to the Department of Health for pubs and restaurants to close at 10pm and for people to be banned from socialising outside their bubble. He explained:

We know from the tracing that we’re doing, that the three main areas where we’re seeing the spread of the virus at the moment are in pubs and bars, in people’s homes .... and in grassroots sports.

So in pubs and restaurants, we’ve asked for a 10pm curfew or 10pm closure of all pubs and restaurants.

And we’ve also asked for table service only to prevent people congregating and standing around bar areas. It’s much easier for people to maintain social distancing if it’s seating only.

We’ve asked for people to only have contact between households if they’re in a social bubble, and for people not to make contact with people outside of their own households or their own social bubble.

@AlecTrevelyan006

🤞🤞🤞

Some reassurance to those who rely on family members for childcare here

I really feel for the universities in the area. I know from friends how hard staff have worked to sort out all the admissions after A levels. Now this on top as they try and move to students on campus.

@HarrietOh

Darlington isn't going to be included in these measures. Seems a bit strange!

I used to work in Darlington. As far as I can tell Darlington prides itself being different. But I'm surprised it won't be included. Does it have a low rate of infection?

Penny thank you for the link. That's reassuring 're childcare.

Seems silly to lock down the wilds around BC but I suppose thet can't exclude there but include Darlington if they're working by borough council area. Yet they're locking down Northumberland . . . It's all mad.

I've got a morrisons delivery due at 12 today. Recently there have been no issues getting delivery slots and I only booked this one yesterday afternoon. I really hope the shopping mayhem doesn't return, that was one of the worst things for me last time as I don't drive.
Hopefully the supermarkets have built capacity in terms of drivers and warehouse workers etc.
It is nice to have a local group though, I agree! I wonder if any of us know each other in real life!!

The people from Sunderland/Durham are just saying they will go to friends in Hartlepool /Middlesbrough (as they aren't breaking the rules
They can do that if they get out before midnight tonight and stay out. But once the area is locked down they aren’t allowed to go and socialise with someone in an area that isn’t locked down.

Nice to have a NE support thread. Does anyone know if kids activities like swimming and footie will be allowed to continue?

Only got my little one's first swimming lesson booked tonight and he's so excited.

So you could go to work in Darlington, your colleagues could go out for lunch but you couldn't join them?