Changes to parking enforcement due to the coronavirus

I received this update from Surrey County Council regarding parking enforcement for on street and off parking. This action is intended to support NHS staff and key workers.

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In light of coronavirus and the government’s instruction to self-isolate and maintain social distancing, we understand that residents are working and staying at home more than usual. This has changed parking patterns and we are adjusting our parking enforcement approach accordingly. For the time being the district and borough council parking enforcement teams in Surrey will:

  • Not enforce parking on single yellow lines in quiet residential roads
  • Issue temporary parking permits for car parks or on street parking schemes where they consider it appropriate to do so
  • Provide more flexible arrangements in council car parks where appropriate

All on street parking charges have been suspended until further notice and NHS responders / volunteers and carers can park for free in council car parks and on street.

Parking on double yellow lines or zig zags or on single yellow lines on main roads and in town centres could be dangerous and will be enforced as normal. During this time it is important to remember that essential public services will need to maintain access to homes and facilities so please park considerately.

Check your district or borough council parking enforcement web pages for further information in your area.

Information from here: https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/roads-and-transport/parking/coronavirus

Update from MD of South Western Railway

I have received the update below from South Western Railway’s Managing Director, Mark Hopwood.

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I wanted to update you on the work South Western Railway has been carrying out in dealing with the Coronavirus and keeping key workers moving during this critical time.

Following on from the changes to the train service timetable we made last week, we have made further adjustments to our revised timetable, with extra early morning and later evening trains to better meet key workers’ travel patterns.  We have also this week made further contact with key stakeholders, including NHS trusts, supermarket distribution centres, and emergency services across our network to check our timetable is meeting their transportation needs. 

Our priority is to keep our trains running for the essential service workers who have to get to work, while keeping everyone safe and helping prevent the spread of the virus. This includes adapting our cleaning regime with our heavy cleaning programme suspended so the team can concentrate on disinfecting trains, with a particular focus on key touchpoints such as handrails, door buttons and toilets. As well as overnight cleaning we have extended the turnround times of trains to allow additional cleaning, bringing in off-track staff and trainees to help disinfect the trains whilst they are in service. The reduction in the number of train services has allowed the team to concentrate their efforts on the trains still running and so help keep customers and colleagues alike safe.

We have also closed our waiting rooms and are making announcements on trains and at stations to promote social distancing among those who have no option but to travel, while using all available communication channels to advise against non-essential travel and urge people to save lives and stay home.

Following Government advice, we have advised many of our non-operational colleagues to work from home and are restricting the activities of our customer contact centre. Unfortunately this has temporarily hampered our ability to handle refunds, however we are currently putting plans in place to allow us to restart this process very soon; although it will take some considerable time for us to work through the backlog of outstanding claims.

I know that refunds have been a major concern for many customers and I am pleased that the industry has this week announced some further policy changes which will alleviate some of those concerns such as extending the refund window from 28 day to 56 days, helping those who may be self-isolating and who feared missing out on a refund. Full details are available on our website.

Throughout this challenging period, we have tried to keep everyone updated through all available channels, including twitter, our website, station customer information screens, and stakeholder emails like this one. We have, and will continue to, take on board feedback about our services and how we can best meet the needs of not just those key workers, but also of those customers who are no longer travelling and need to change their plans.

We recognise that together with Network Rail we have a vital role to play in keeping the country moving and I am exceptionally proud of how my colleagues at South Western Railway, particularly those on the frontline, have risen to the challenge and are just getting on with the job of running our railway.

If you need any further information, please contact stakeholders@swrailway.com  


Yours sincerely,

Request for donations for Haslemere Food Bank

You may be aware that there has been a considerable surge in demand for the Haslemere Food Bank in these last three weeks. You may also be aware that they have had a generous and heart-warming surge in donations, which has been a great help in keeping pace with demand. On their behalf, thanks to all those of you who have helped to continue and indeed increase our work during this time.

Here are items that are needed by the food bank to help Haslemere residents:

And here is information about how you can donate to Haslemere Food Bank:

2nd TTRO notices from SCC in Haslemere

Please find below the 2nd notice of the closure for various roads in Haslemere which I received today from the Surrey County Council highways department. One relates to Courts Hill Road/Longdene Road, the other to Scotland Lane.

Further coronavirus updates from Surrey County Council

The information below is taken from the daily SCC Leader update that councillors are receiving:

Closure of Countryside Car Parks

Regrettably, we have been left with no choice but to close all countryside car parks owned by Surrey County Council as of midnight tonight. We have closed them as they are a place where groups can and were forming in the last week despite Government guidance on social distancing. This is in line with government advice, and consistent with other major countryside landowners, including RHS Wisley, National Trust, Forestry Commission at Alice Holt and Painshill, which have either closed car parks, or closed altogether as we all try to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

While people can still visit the countryside, we would advise residents who are going out for their daily exercise to visit quiet locations close to their homes and not travel where possible.

I appreciate this is not the news you want to hear but there is a balance to be struck between enabling people to get the necessary exercise and limiting the movement of individuals to prevent further spread.

Please be rest assured this Council is committed to improving and increasing access to our countryside and at our Cabinet meeting on 31st March we will be considering proposals that will see new investment of £1.4m in much needed infrastructure including new noticeboards, wayfinder posts, nature play trails and upgrading our visitor centres.

During these difficult times, and while the car parks remain closed, our officers will continue to work up plans to implement these improvements as practicably as possible.

We look forward to the day when are able to reverse this position, as Government advice is revised in the future. The closures have been well publicised on several of the county council’s social media channels – including Surrey News and Explore Surrey. Additionally, an alert box is on a number of countryside web pages, like this one specifically about countryside car parks.

Government’s ‘Stay Home, Save Lives’ Campaign

NEW public information materials are now available on the Campaign Resource Centre. See full details of all the materials available at the end of this brief. Follow PHE on Twitter: @PHE_SouthEast

The work being undertaken by Surrey County Council – a note from the SCC Leader

The work being undertaken by Surrey County Council staff at this moment in time is nothing short of incredible. We really are seeing public service at its very best – in particular I want to thank our social workers and teachers and those on the frontline who are doing the most remarkable job in the most challenging conditions – and I want to thank them personally for all they are doing – day in day out.

Three core messages

  • Stay at home and save lives. It’s as simple as that – follow the government advice.
  • Surrey County Council’s core mission in this is to ensure that we do everything we can to reduce the pressure on the NHS, protect our most vulnerable communities and support our staff and residents.
  • We will get through this together, thanks to the hard work of our frontline workers, and thanks to the vigilance and shared responsibility of the British public.

General staff … Across the board our staff are working long hours, adapting to remote working very quickly, and are totally focussed on supporting Surrey’s most vulnerable residents and helping our communities deal with this unprecedented challenge.

Vulnerable people’s hub – The Surrey Local Resilience Forum are coordinating measures to support the 17,000 most vulnerable in Surrey (who are receiving letters from the NHS). –

  • The Hub will also support the coordination and mobilisation of volunteers and will respond to the needs of our most vulnerable. This may be supporting in the delivery of medicines and food. –
  • The Hub will also support those who feel isolated in the coming weeks and months who are feeling frightened and concerned. –
  • This work will bolster the work that is already underway by a team operating a community helpline 0300 200 1008.

Social care / PPE – We are continuing to support those most vulnerable residents who rely on us – Our workforce has been amazing at continuing this critical service – There has been an issue with getting the right protective equipment for frontline workers and that is something we have been escalating up to government

Schools – Numbers of children in schools has been lower than expected, our schools are managing – If it is at all possible for children to be at home, then they should be. The message from central government is clear – If your work is not critical in the response to Coronavirus then please keep your child at home. Even the children of key workers should stay at home if at all possible.

Public Health England

All campaign materials updated.

‘Stay home, save lives’ campaign: following the Prime Minister’s briefing on Monday night, today SCC has launched a new campaign to encourage people to stay at home in order to protect the NHS and save lives. The campaign will run across TV, radio, digital and social channels. We have created a suite of assets for you to help amplify the message across your communication channels. The campaign materials are now available to download on the Campaign Resource Centre.

At a national level, PHE has reached out to a significant number of charities and representative organisations to amplify the campaign messages.

‘Looking out for each other’ neighbourliness campaign

We are still intending to launch the ‘looking out for each other’ neighbourliness campaign, however, campaign messages are currently being refined in line with the new ‘stay home, save lives’ campaign. Further updates will be shared in due course.

Self/home isolation campaign

These resources have now been removed from the Campaign Resource Centre as they have been superseded by the new ‘stay home, save lives’ campaign materials. Hand hygiene campaign These materials are still current, however, we are updating the lockup (logo) featured on them with the new ‘Stay home, protect the NHS, save lives’ lockup.

Community helpline for Surrey

The new community helpline is available to direct you to services that can help during the coronavirus pandemic. The telephone number is 0300 200 1008 (Monday to Friday 9am-5pm) (These hours are currently being reviewed). This community phone line is here for two things:

  • To help direct residents who need support, such as picking up shopping, prescription collections or having someone who can be a telephone friend, to services who can help.
  • To provide advice on where to register your offer of help to support your community. The Community Helpline will not be able to provide any public health advice (please use existing services such as 111) or answer general enquiries relating to council services (these should be directed to our standard contact page).

Surrey Vulnerable People Hub

The Surrey Local Resilience Forum are coordinating measures to support the 17,000 extremely vulnerable in Surrey. The Hub will also support the coordination and mobilisation of volunteers and will respond to the needs of our most vulnerable. This may be supporting in the delivery of medicines and food. The Hub will also support those who feel isolated in the coming weeks and months who are feeling frightened and concerned. This work will bolster the work that is already underway by a team operating a community helpline. More information on this will follow.

Coronavirus – birth registrations

Appointments postponed for next 21 days. Further to the Prime Minister’s announcement on 23 March, unfortunately we will not be able to carry out any birth registration appointments for the next 21 days. You can make a claim for child benefit or universal credit prior to the birth being registered. More information will be made available over the coming days. Thank you for your understanding at this difficult time.