Storm Eunice warning ahead of 60mph+ winds

The Met Office has an amber and red weather warning in place across the south today (Friday 18/2/22) until 9pm tonight due to extremely strong winds. These could go above 60mph locally.

An amber warning means that flying debris, road closures, delays to public transport, fallen trees and power cuts are likely. Ensure any garden furniture or items stored outside are moved inside or secured. You can read advice on staying safe in a stormon the Met Office website.

At the time of writing, Wokingham Borough Council (WBC) said that all waste collections are going ahead as normal. Ensure your recycling bags are tightly sealed when you put them out. Please get your bags, caddies and garden waste bins in quickly if you’re at home and are able to do so.

You can keep an eye on the Met Office weather warnings for more information. Any information on powercuts can be found on the SSEN website. Repairs to council houses can be reported by phone using the numbers on WBC’s webpages.

The Council’s teams are on standby to help with urgent issues. Report an issue with a tree or report an issue with a blocked road on its website. If it’s urgent, which would mean it is very likely to present an imminent threat to life or serious injury or serious damage to property, call 0118 974 6000 and select the ‘highways’ option 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday.

The Council has also activated its Severe Weather Emergency Protocol. If you are homeless, or are aware of someone sleeping rough, emergency beds are available during this cold weather. Contact the team on its free support line 0118 974 6000 (during office hours) or 0800 212 111 (outside of office hours).

If issues happen outside normal working hours (9am to 5pm) call 0800 212 111 out of hours – Monday to Friday 5pm to 9am, weekend days and public holiday. Only call this number If there is a danger to life, property or major disruption, it’s not for updates or reporting issues again.

The Woodley Volunteer for Covid-19  group has celebrated raising over 200,000 food items, which have been donated to the local Woodley community.

On Friday, February 11, certificates were handed out to the volunteers by Woodley Town Mayor Cllr Janet Sartorel, Deputy Town Mayor, Cllr Kay Gilder, and Wokingham Town Mayor, Cllr Keith Baker, who gave a brief speech thanking the community.

Ronnie Goodberry, who now runs the group, said on its Facebook page of the event:

“Throughout this pandemic , you, the members kept giving, your kindness, support and overwhelming generosity have seen no bounds. Today, to repay your kindness, a small group of our members randomly drawn from a hat helped us as a group to celebrate our monumental achievements since starting the Woodley food drive in March 2020. You guys and girls have donated – as of last weekend – a massive 201,319 items. I’d like to thank you all personally from the bottom of my heart for the support you’ve given and continue to give towards the group and the vulnerable residents and needing families of Woodley. You’ve done Woodley proud and shown to others what can be achieved when a community pulls together.”

Woodley Mayors honoured to congratulate the group

Both Woodley Mayors were honoured to be part of the event and amazed at the generosity and kindness of the Woodley community.

NEW COVID-19 VACCINATION CENTRE TO OPEN IN WOKINGHAM THIS WEEKEND

A new walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre will open at the Wokingham Library this Friday (18 February), to help make access to the vaccine easier for residents.

The site will open from 2pm to 7pm on Fridays and 11am to 4.45pm on Saturdays and Sundays, with no appointment necessary. A review of the site will take place after six weeks, so Wokingham Borough Council is encouraging residents to make good use of the facility.

First, second, and booster doses of the Pfizer vaccine are available to all eligible people, including: 

• Pregnant women
• 12–15-year-olds
• People not registered with a GP or those without an NHS number
• People with no indefinite leave to remain status

Visitors travelling by car can park at Denmark Street Car Park, and more parking options are available across the town.

Cllr Charles Margetts, executive member for health, wellbeing and adult services, said: “One of the cornerstones of moving forward and living with endemic Covid is vaccination.  While the uptake rate is good in the borough, there are still many people who are yet to take up the offer, and we have often felt it would be significantly improved by the provision of more local vaccination centres. 

“We have campaigned for months for a standalone vaccination centre in the borough and are pleased that the CCG has agreed to our request. We would encourage all residents to take advantage of this local facility and get vaccinated, and we look forward to welcoming residents in for their jabs.”

Nobody going for their first, second or booster jab will be questioned about why they haven’t had it yet. The onsite staff will be happy to welcome residents. Anyone who has questions about the Covid-19 vaccine can come and chat to the health professionals working at the site or email the council’s vaccine support team on covid.info@wokingham.gov.uk.

“Everyone would like to see the back of the pandemic, but it is important that we don’t lose sight of what protects us from the virus,” said Cllr Margetts. “While Omicron is milder in the sense that it has so far resulted in a lower hospitalisation and death rate than prior variants, it can still make you very sick and it is highly transmissible. The vaccine is what helps make this sickness less serious, reduce transmission and it is still strongly recommended.”

If you tested positive in December and were unable to get your booster, it’s now time to come forward for it (28 days/4 weeks from when you tested positive). Parents, carers and guardians are also encouraged to bring children and young people over the age of 12 to this new site over half term (for 12–15-year-olds this must be 12 weeks from the date of their positive PCR test if they were recently infected).

For Covid-19 vaccine updates in the borough, please keep an eye on the Wokingham Borough Council website:https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/covid-19/testing-and-vaccinations/covid-19-vaccinations/

What do you love about Woodley?

Perhaps it’s the people, or the parks, or the selection of shops in the town centre.

If you’d like to be featured in a short video about the best bits of Woodley, please email Matt by 25th February (matthew.filmore@woodley.gov.uk).

Wokingham Borough Council continues to tackle fuel poverty across the borough with the launch of the Green Homes Grant Local Authority Delivery scheme (GHG LAD2).

The scheme provides free grants to help residents on low incomes and who are living in low energy efficient properties to carry out a range of works to their home aimed at improving energy efficiency and lowering their fuel bills. 

The improvements will also help lower local carbon emissions and support the council’s vision for a carbon net zero Wokingham borough by 2030.

“The impact of Covid-19, along with the spiralling worldwide cost for energy and living, has had a massive impact on many of our residents,” said Cllr Gregor Murray, executive member for resident services, communications and emissions. “And it’s often those who are most vulnerable, or on the lowest incomes who get hardest hit through no fault of their own.

“Schemes like the Green Homes Grant can make a massive difference for people who are struggling to make ends meet, with homes taking part often seeing an immediate reduction in the amount of energy they need to use to keep their homes safe and warm and, as such, lower costs.  

“The grant covers a range of home improvements such as installing solid wall insulation, solar panels, or even air source heat pumps. It could also help cover the costs of double or triple glazing in homes which currently only have single glazing installed. This makes it the perfect counterpart to our Help to Heat scheme which has already helped more than 1,300 residents benefit from free or low cost loft and cavity wall insulation in their homes, with many more to come as the scheme continues to run into this year.”  

Letters are being sent out to households the council believes may qualify for the scheme to encourage them to apply, although other households are able to apply direct if they believe they may be eligible for GHG LAD2 support. 

In order to qualify for the GHG grant, resident’s need to have a household income of below £30,000 and live in a property with a current energy performance rating (EPC) of E, F or G. Some D rated properties may also qualify depending on the work required. 

Private landlords may also be able to qualify for partial grants if their property has an EPC of E, F or G and the resident living in the home meets the income criteria above and consents to a grant application being made. However, private landlords will need to fund at least a third of the costs themselves with total grant funding available capped at £5,000.

Residents and landlords who believe they might qualify need to apply via the Energy Trust’s green homes grant scheme application form on their website at: https://surveys.est.org.uk/s/GreenHomesGrantSchemeLAD 

Alternatively they can contact Warmworks, the council’s managing agent for the scheme, on 0808 196 8255 for more information.

If eligible Warmworks will get in touch to discuss the next steps and arrange a survey of their home and recommend a package of improvements to make the home more energy efficient. Installation will be completed by an approved and trusted sub-contractor at no cost to householders for owner occupied property, provided all conditions are met.

Residents who do not meet the criteria for the GHG LAD2 scheme, may still be eligible for support with free or low-cost home insulation under the council’s Help to Heat scheme. You can find out more information about this and how to apply on the council’s website (www.wokingham.gov.uk and search ‘energy saving’).

Help is also available through the Household Support Fund, which the council is distributing through the local voluntary sector to help families and individuals who may be struggling to pay for basic living costs such as energy bills this winter. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, please contact One Front Door so the team can assess your needs and help you find a way forward. You can use the form on their website, email: contact@citizensadvicewokingham.org.uk, or phone 0808 278 7958. The phone lines are open 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, and 9am to 1pm on Saturdays.

At the recent Full Council meeting, it was decided to change the Town Elector’s Meeting from Tuesday 8 March to Thursday 26 May.

Details of this and other items at the meeting can be read in the Draft Minutes.

Would you like to learn how to maintain your bike or change an inner tube?

My Journey Wokingham is running a basic bike maintenance workshop at Coronation Hall tomorrow (Wednesday 9 February).

The course costs £10.00 and needs to be booked directly with My Journey Wokingham HERE.

Citizens Advice Wokingham will begin offering face-to-face appointments at its Woodley and Wokingham town centre offices from 14th February, initially on a case-by-case basis following a triage via its One Front Door (0808 278 7958).

Blue bag and food waste bag deliveries begin

New green food caddy liners and blue general waste bags are now being delivered by Wokingham Borough Council. These will be delivered over a six-week period, with all residents receiving them by mid-March.

More than five million blue bags will be rolling out across the borough over the next six weeks. These are for general waste, with each household receiving 80 bags in two rolls of 40 to cover the period between April 2022 and March 2023.

You can check when yours are due to be delivered HERE; just enter your street name.

All households will also receive an allocation of 75 food waste bags. Food waste put into the blue general rubbish bags gets disposed of, rots and releases methane, a harmful greenhouse gas. When recycled, food waste can generate energy to power our homes. If you need a any food waste caddies check WBC’s recycling webpages to find out where to get one.

Last year, residents in Wokingham borough threw away a massive 36,000 tonnes of rubbish – half of which could have been recycled. Recycling saves the council taxpayer money as it costs less to recycle waste than it does to dispose of it. It also conserves natural resources and saves energy by using recycled instead of raw materials to create new products.

The fencing at Malone Park is now complete.

We’d like to thank Safe Site Fencing for completing the work so quickly and so efficiently.