As of today Croydon, like the rest of London, is in Tier 4: Stay at Home with the planned relaxation of the rules for Christmas cancelled. I’d like to update you and ask you to share the following information with your networks.
The situation with Covid-19 in Croydon is extremely serious. Cases continue to rise rapidly and along with them, the number of people being treated in our hospital and very unwell in intensive care. The incidence rate is now 444.3 per 100,000 and we have 121 people in Croydon University Hospital who have tested positive for Covid-19, eight of whom are in intensive care. I know you will be as sad as I am to hear that in December, 24 Croydon residents have died after contracting the virus.
We must now do all we can to prevent the virus spreading, protect our NHS and save lives.
It is vital that we all now follow the new Tier 4 rules. This means staying at home as much as possible, apart from limited exemptions set out in law.
· People must work from home if they can, but may travel to work if this is not possible, for example in the construction and manufacturing sectors.
· People should not enter or leave tier 4 areas, and tier 4 residents must not stay overnight away from home.
· Individuals can only meet one person from another household in an outdoor public space.
· Non-essential retail, indoor gyms and leisure facilities, and personal care services must close.
· In England, those living in tier 4 areas should not mix with anyone outside their own household at Christmas, though support bubbles will remain in place for those at particular risk of loneliness or isolation.
You can find the Tier 4 restrictions in full here. I know it is disappointing not to see friends and family over the holiday period, but safety must come first. The best gift we can give our loved ones this year is their health and wellbeing.
For anyone who is struggling, help is at hand locally from the council and its partners, with information on our Covid-19 webpages at www.croydon.gov.uk/coronavirus
Please look after yourselves at this very difficult time and encourage others to do the same - stay connected as much as possible by phone or online.
Once again, I want to thank all of you for your ongoing support and everything I know you are all doing to keep Croydon safe.
Yours,
Rachel Flowers,
Director of Public Health
