Public Health leaders in
Nottingham and Nottinghamshire have welcomed the expected publication of Pillar
2 data.
Alison Challenger and Jonathan Gribbin, Directors of Public Health for Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, said:
“Publication of the Pillar 2 data is welcome because together with the Pillar 1 data the results will give us a better picture about the whole number of infections in our communities. We will continue to work through all the intelligence we have available to draw conclusions which will help inform our plans to manage local outbreaks or advise the public on the best course of action to take.
“The overall rate of infection in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire remains at a low level.
“It is important we have all sources of data and intelligence about our communities available to us to help inform our plans and strategies in the event of a local outbreak.
“With more people being tested we would anticipate the number of identifiable cases also increasing and this will help inform the action and the decisions we need to make to contain a potential outbreak. Anyone who tests positive needs to follow the advice and self-isolate.
“The best way everyone can help to stop the spread of the virus is to remain two metres apart from other people where possible and at least one metre where this is not possible, to regularly and thoroughly wash hands for 20 seconds, to wear a face covering in shops and on public transport, to self-isolate if symptoms exist and to get tested and follow the advice when the results are given.”
If you have symptoms you can book a test for Coronavirus. Follow this link to the NHS Test and Trace Service or call 119.
These steps remain the single best way of combatting the disease in our communities. We will continue to work with our communities and if outbreaks occur we will work quickly and decisively to deploy all necessary actions to contain and suppress the virus through the best strategies in each case.
On the 1st of July Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Councils launched their respective Local Outbreak Control Plans which form part of the Government’s commitment to enable upper tier local authorities to develop local strategies reduce, suppress and contain future outbreaks of COVID-19.
Councillor Kay Cutts MBE, Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council said: “Information is power in the fight against this virus so I am very pleased that the data we need is available. This will enable our analysts to work out where the virus is circulating in our communities. If we are to recover our economy successfully and give our children the education they deserve by getting them back to school, everyone needs to play our part and be sensible. This virus has not gone away and the power to beat this remains quite literally in the hands of the population. I can assure people regardless of where they live in this county that we will take the right approach in the right place at the right time to tackle this virus head on.”
Nottingham City Council Deputy Leader, Cllr Sally Longford, said: “This extra data will provide a fuller picture of incidents of Covid-19 in the city and so will enable us to respond even more effectively. As part of implementing our recently published Local Outbreak Control Plan, a daily Outbreak Cell is meeting to review all available data, including local intelligence and this new data, so that any emerging issues can be quickly picked up and responded to appropriately and in a targeted way.
“It’s important to understand that the Pillar 2 data shows additional cases over a long period of time, so it is not a sudden increase in cases of Covid in our area. I also want to reassure people that the rate of infection in Nottingham remains low at present. We are grateful to local residents who have responded so responsibly to the restrictions placed on them and urge them to continue to play their part to help keep the city safe by observing social distancing and hand washing to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in Nottingham.”