6 January 2021
Council News Update - 05 January
Tier 4 Council's News Update - 20 December
4 January 2021
Healthwatch Reading, produce regular helpful and interesting information on local health issues. Their latest Newsletter includes a very good Guide to using local health and care services as lockdown eases, which you may find helpful.
We developed this page to provide sources of help and advice at the start of the lockdown, when things were changing frequently. Now, as many restrictions have been lifted, we are removing and editing sections that no longer seem relevant. We will continue to post new information and help on our Facebook page, for which you don't need a Facebook account for.
Our local Reading Voluntary Action organisation also has a wide range of useful information for individuals and groups, and nationally we like the information provided by the Eden Communities Project.
Public Health Berkshire, covering Reading and neighbouring Local Authorities, have set up a Dashboard of useful Covid-19 information.
Healthwatch Reading have provided this helpful Local Guide to Health & Care Services during the pandemic.
For those who are able these groups may be of interest
Other ways to help
If you would like to make a donation, then you might consider these organisations:
Local
National
International
The Council's response and details of how their services are affected can be found at: https://www.reading.gov.uk/coronavirus-covid-19/
Council Committee meetings are currently being held online and the public are able to observe them, in line with the recent government regulations.
Here's what various celebrities and others are offering you and your kids for free daily to help with their education while schools are closed: Home Education
The British Psychological Society - https://thepsychologist.bps.org.uk/schools-really-out
Gruffalo illustrator, Axel Scheffler has produced a book about Covid-19 Coronavirus just for children - available as a FREE download at:
https://nosycrowcoronavirus.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/Coronavirus-ABookForChildren.pdf
Donations requested in lieu of payment, to www.nhscharitiestogether.co.uk/
Reading Chronicle https://www.readingchronicle.co.uk/news/18333718.readings-snow-princess-parties-deliver-free-entertainment-children-facebook-live/
Much has changed since the lockdown was eased, but the Which Magazine have maintained a table of Supermarket Opening Times, these includes times specifically allocated for vulnerable people or for key workers.
At the start we developed a list of the many local suppliers who offered a range of goods and some also delivered. Whilst they may no longer provide the same services, here was the last list we published, which may be useful: Local Food Deliveries and Collections
RVA have put together information about how to keep in touch: http://rva.org.uk/keeping-in-touch-online/
The Facebook community group Champions To End Loneliness - North Reading posts and comments help bring people together.
This is a stressful time for many of us, so we hope these websites will be helpful.
If you know or are a vulnerable person who has no support, then the One Reading Community Hub action line can connect people in need of help with: volunteers, organisations and services that can support them during the Covid-19 outbreak.
Please only contact the hub for urgent welfare needs, when no family member or trusted friend can help. Their telephone no. 0808 189 4325 is open 9am-5pm, five days a week.
Sport in Mind is a Reading based independent multi-award winning mental health charity, whose mission is "To improve the lives of people experiencing mental health problems through sport and physical activity".
General advice from Sports England How to stay active while at home.Reading Sport + Leisure have listed useful links which offer exercise ideas for all ages and abilities.
https://www.futurelearn.com has a huge range of fascinating and free on-line short courses, from Universities all over the world. Typically, they take 4 or 5 hours a week.
Read about WEA courses on the RVA website. The Workers's Education Association is the UK’s largest voluntary sector provider of adult education in England and Scotland. It's first volunteer-led branch was opened in Reading in 1904.
There are many different videos and online classes available for all levels, which we will list here, as hear we about them.