We?re now starting our fourth week of national lockdown restrictions for Covid-19 and I never take for granted how difficult this is for our citizens ? especially during the cold and dark winter months. The number of cases of the virus continues to fall in the city, so it is clear that the current restrictions are having an impact. While it is important that we continue to stay at home to stop the spread of the virus, we now have two important actions that we can take to help us on the path out of this pandemic:

1. Vaccinations: We urgently need people who are eligible for the Covid-19 vaccination to get booked in for their jab as soon as possible. Protecting our older and more vulnerable population will be a big step towards keeping our citizens safe. Bookings are now being taken for people aged over 75. We have a range of vaccination sites in the city and nearby:

   a. The Forest Recreation Ground

   b. King?s Meadow Campus on Lenton Lane (former Central Television Studio)

   c. Queen?s Medical Centre

   d. Nottingham City Hospital

   e. Richard Herrod Leisure (in Carlton)

   f. Gamston Community Centre (near West Bridgford)

   Please help with this: if you know someone who is aged over 75 who lives in the city, please get them booked in via the online booking link or by calling 0115 883 4640. We expect this to be extended to the over-70s later in the week.

2. Could you have Covid and not know about it? We know that one in three people who have the virus have no symptoms and could be inadvertently spreading it to their family. This is why we have set up a special testing centre at Djanogly Community Leisure Centre so people in the city can access a free and rapid test. By getting a regular test we can better protect our families and our work colleagues. If you live or work in the city, you can visit the Asymptomatic Testing Centre: Monday ? Friday from 9.30am to 6.30pm and Saturday from 9.30am to 2.30pm. Please note that the service is closed on Sundays. There is no need to book ? just drop in for a free test. Find out more here: https://www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk/asymptomatictesting

The past 24 hours have been challenging but our teams have been working flat-out to keep the city?s roads and pavements clear of ice, plus refilling neighbourhood grit bins for residents to use.

While the snow is starting to thaw today, we are anticipating very cold temperatures again tonight. We?ll be out on the main highways with our gritting lorries and Street Scene staff will target pavements in areas around shops and schools. Please remember that side streets will remain very slippery so only head out if absolutely necessary. Part of the issue is that grit is activated by vehicles moving over the top of it ? tyres grind the salt into the road surface. At present, we are seeing fewer cars on the road because of lockdown so it takes a little longer for the grit to work.

Our bin crews, like all key workers, have worked really hard to keep services going during the Covid pandemic but unfortunately some bin collections weren?t possible today because of the icy conditions. Please bear with us as we catch up with missed collections over the next few days.

Today at a full meeting of the city council we approved the Recovery and Improvement Plan, to strengthen the authority for the future. Our Recovery Plan provides assurance to Government that the council is responding positively to the recent review and is committed to making improvements at pace. The Plan also confirms that the council is committed to ensuring that it continues to deliver the quality statutory and day-to-day local services that help keep the city safe and clean, and that it will work in partnership with the communities it serves to build a prosperous city that offers residents the opportunity to realise their potential.

Despite the challenges that we face we remain ambitious for Nottingham and for all who live and work here. Our core mission is to deliver quality local services, ensure the city is safe and clean and support jobs and growth, so that local people can be proud of their city, and of a council that is there to serve them. Click here for more on the Recovery Plan