The latest on the vaccine The Coronavirus vaccination programme continued across the borough this week, with more than 26,600 people now having received their first vaccination.
More than 60% of people in Oldham aged over 75 have now received their first vaccination, as have more than 80% of those aged over 80. Meanwhile, residents and staff of all care homes across the borough have also been offered the vaccine. All of those people in the top four priority groups are well on track to have been offered their vaccine by mid-February.
Please don't worry if you, or someone you know, is in one of these groups and haven't had a phone call yet, you will. However, if you don't want to wait, you may have received a letter from the NHS offering you the option of attending the Mass Vaccination Centre at the Etihad Campus in Manchester or a local pharmacy. But if you have already booked an appointment with your GP practice, you can ignore this letter.
If you want to know how you'll be contacted for your vaccine, click here.
For more information on the COVID-19 vaccination, first phase priority groups click here. Please share this information with your family and friends.
Talk budget with us You've got until Monday to send us your thoughts on this year's budget proposals.
This consultation comes at a time when the council is looking to save more than £30million as a result of the continuing financial pressures of the Coronavirus and increased demand for services. So it's really important that as many people as possible have their say.
Support for taxi drivers The council is releasing a £450,000 funding package to support taxi and hackney carriage drivers/operators, who have been helping people access essential services during the current COVID pandemic.
Any vehicle owner who fits a safety screen, which will be supplied by the council, will receive a grant to cover the cost of their next vehicle licence. A similar scheme will be in place for drivers who do not own a vehicle which will cover the cost of their driver licence.
More information will follow about the scheme over the coming weeks.
Please remember: you must wear a face covering when using taxis or private hire vehicles. You will be breaking the law if you fail to do so and could be fined.
Coronavirus testing Regular Coronavirus testing for people who work with the public and who are not showing symptoms has begun in Oldham at four sites. These are:
👉 Shaw Life Long Learning Centre
👉 Failsworth Town Hall
👉 Oldham Leisure Centre
👉 Uppermill Civic Hall
It's important to consider getting a regular test if you are eligible.
No booking is required, they are free and results are back in under an hour. (Please note opening times have slightly changed this week). For more details go to www.oldham.gov.uk/keyworkertesting
Violence reduction survey – take part As part of the development of the GM Violent Crime Reduction Campaign, Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) want to hear from young people aged 10–17 and their parents and carers, from across Greater Manchester.
Two surveys are currently live – one aimed at young people, and one aimed at parents and carers. The surveys will help GMCA to find out what it’s like to be a young person, what support they would like, and how they can help parents and carers. Young people who fill out the survey, will also be offered the chance to enter a prize draw to win a pair of Apple AirPods.
We're kickstarting careers The council has agreed to support a key national scheme that will aim to get more than 1,500 young people aged 16–24 into work in Oldham over the next 12 months. To read more about this great scheme, click here.
Greater Manchester Hate Crime Awareness Week (1–7 February) Next week is Greater Manchester Hate Crime Awareness Week and as part of this week of action, Oldham Council is hosting a number of virtual sessions to inform residents what hate crime is and how you can report it. For more information on hate crime, please visit www.oldham.gov.uk/hatecrime
