Established in 2002
On behalf of our members, volunteers, staff and trustees we would like to wish every one a Happy Christmas and a very festive and healthy New Year.
We will be closed on Christmas Eve, 24th Dec, and will re-open on Tuesday 4th January 2022.
Merry Christmas everyone
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We will be holding this year’s AGM on Tuesday 23rd November at 6.30pm in the Baptist Church at Rockspring.
Everyone is invited, but Covid restrictions mean we need to manage how many people we have in the building, so if you’d like to come please email manager@workingtogetherludlow.co.uk or telephone 01584 318925.
This year, we have also produced an Annual Report:
We’re planning lots of exciting things to share with you and hope to see you there!
The draft minutes for this year’s AGM are now available to read:
Draft AGM Minutes 2021 (PDF)
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01/09/2021
We are delighted to announce the opening of the Working Together Charity Bookshop in Craven Arms.
We have been working on the plans to take over the bookshop for some time so it’s great to be able to finally share the news.
The fantastic band of Bookshop volunteers are joining us from The Furniture Scheme and will reopen the shop on Tuesday 7th September.
Regular opening will be Tuesday – Saturday. More details will follow once we’re up and running.
We’ll be getting the shop ready next Monday (6th September) between 10.30amd and 2.30pm – so pop in and say hi if you’re in the area.
If you would like to donate any good quality books, please drop them in to us at Rockspring Community Centre in the first instance so that the shop doesn’t get overwhelmed.
We’re all really excited by this great opportunity and are looking forward to welcoming the bookshop volunteers to the Working Together family.
Phone: TBC
Email: bookshop@workingtogetherludlow.co.uk
Address: The Charity Bookshop
Unit 2, Drovers’ House
The Auction Yard
Craven Arms
SY7 9BZ
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19/08/2021
The government has made changes to the guidance on self-isolating if you have had a close contact with a Covid positive person.
It is no longer a requirement for people who are double jabbed or aged under 18 to self-isolate if identified as having a close contact of a positive COVID-19 case.
Advice for health and social care is different and all of our staff and volunteers will still be taking a PCR test before coming into Rockspring if they have a positive close contact.
This new advice covers staff not members, but we ask that you please contact us to discuss the situation before attending Rockspring if you have had close contact with a Covid positive person.
Thank you
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09/08/2021
We’ll soon be welcoming Working Together family and friends back to our café for a cuppa and a piece of cake.
We won’t be opening to the public for a while yet but if our supporters would like to join us we’d be pleased to hear from you.
We’re asking that you give us a quick call beforehand on 01584 318925 – to let us know your coming and to help us manage numbers.
Some restrictions remain in place at the moment to be sure we can keep everyone safe.
If case numbers continue to fall and guidance allows we may be able to open the café for drop ins later in the year.
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20/07/2021
Shropshire Council have cash grants available to anyone who is struggling financially, it is not necessary for benefits to be in payment and we will look at each case on its own merits.
The money is aimed at Shropshire householders, especially low-paid working families with children whose finances may have suffered due to the long effect of Covid and lockdowns and who are now struggling to make ends meet.
The council have made it easy to apply over the phone (a paper form is still available on request), one of their advisers will complete the paperwork during the call and a specialist will look to see how they can help and if any further information is needed.
So if you, or someone you know, is having difficulty meeting essential outgoings, call Shropshire Council on 0345 678 9078.
We still need to do all we can to make sure that anyone who is told by NHS Test and Trace Service to stay at home and self-isolate does so to prevent the spread of coronavirus and a £500 Test and Trace Support Payment is still available through Shropshire Council.
For the qualifying conditions and to apply see here:
If someone doesn’t qualify, or if their financial need is greater, please remember that thee is also a range of other grants available instead and we urge you to encourage your clients to apply if they are in need.
For more information on all of the financial and other help available see Shropshire Council’s web pages here:
or call them on our Covid helpline – which is 0345 678 9028.
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Working Together: Covid restrictions update
06/07/2021
Dear members, families, carers, volunteers and staff
As you may be aware, the government has now announced the ending of legal Covid restrictions from 19 July.
At Working Together the safety of our members, volunteers and staff remains our top priority and, in line with government advice to ‘maintain caution’, we be continuing with our existing Covid Safe procedures in the immediate term.
This will include staff and volunteers continuing to wear face masks at all times inside and asking members who are able to, to wear masks when moving around the building and where social distancing isn’t possible.
We will no longer be allocating members to a specific room only but we will still be ensuring that we make the best use of all the space we have available to aid social distancing.
We will also continue with our temperature checks, regular hand washing and additional ventilation and cleaning measures.
We encourage members, where possible, to follow government recommendations and test twice a week using the simple Lateral Flow testing. We are happy to provide advice and support with this and this is especially important if members are attending more than one day service.
The number of Covid cases is rising significantly in Shropshire and there is every likelihood that more of us will come into close contact with someone who is Covid positive.
Whilst we are in a different place to late January (when we closed our doors for face-to-face services because of the high number of cases in Shropshire) because many members, volunteers and staff are now double vaccinated, it is still worth remembering that having been ‘double jabbed’ does not remove the risk of someone being Covid positive – and therefore being infectious to others.
Also, according to scientific evidence, being vaccinated twice is just over 80% effective against becoming seriously unwell with Covid, but this figure is slightly lower in some people who are classed as Clinical Extremely Vulnerable.
We would continue to ask that if you have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive, whatever your vaccination status, you inform Working Together at the earliest opportunity. If this is the case, please do not attend face to face services until a PCR test has been undertaken and the results have been returned as negative, or until the end of the government’s recommended period of self-isolation has been completed (currently 10 days).
Working Together can give you advice and support on taking PCR tests.
The government’s announcement is of course very good news and a step on the road to normality, but the Prime Minister has also been clear that Coronavirus ‘continues to carry risks to you and your family’ and he says that ‘we cannot simply revert instantly from Monday 19th July to life as it was before Covid.’.
At Working Together, we will continue to err on the side of caution to ensure we keep our members, volunteers and staff as safe as we can.
We will keep our procedures under regular review and thank you again for your support with this.
Chief Officer
Background information…
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18/01/2021
Last week, Shropshire Council announced that they would not be delivering building based day centre provision for at least the next 14 days.
Their reasoning behind this is is the result of:
“the infection rates in our communities now presents a greater risk to the people we support, their families and our staff.“
Based this decision and our own concerns about the increasing infection rate we have also suspended our face to face services.
We will of course continue and extend our online outreach and telephone support and keep the situation under regular review.
Chief Officer
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14/12/2020
Rachel Robinson, Shropshire’s director of public health has said:
“Christmas is going to feel very different for all of us this year, and I know everyone has made enormous sacrifices over the past 12 months. The news that the rules are being relaxed over the festive period will be welcomed by many, but I would urge everyone to think very carefully before they take advantage of the more lenient rules, and to act responsibly.”
“We need to keep doing all the things designed to keep us safe – respecting social distancing, washing hands, wearing face-coverings, self-isolating when we are asked to do so, and booking a test if you have symptoms.”
A further video update from Rachel Robinson can be found here: https://newsroom.shropshire.gov.uk/2020/12/coronavirus-video-update-from-our-director-of-public-health-rachel-robinson/
Between 23 and 27 December, the three households in a “Christmas bubble” can mix indoors and stay overnight.
People who has formed within a bubble, will be allowed to meet each other:
The bubbles will be fixed, so you will not be able to mix with two households on Christmas Day and two different ones on Boxing Day. Households in your Christmas bubble can’t bubble with anyone else. If a person has coronavirus symptoms or is self-isolating, then they cannot join a bubble.
For more information about forming a Christmas bubble with friends and family, please visit here – https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/making-a-christmas-bubble-with-friends-and-family/making-a-christmas-bubble-with-friends-and-family
For many Shropshire residents, the ongoing pandemic poses challenges that stretch beyond a reduction in the freedoms that we’re accustomed to, and the obvious risk to health. The financial implications of the virus continue to impose difficulties and hardship across the county. Therefore, the recently established COVID Winter Grant scheme will go a long way to ensuring that families don’t go hungry this winter.
A full press release on this scheme can be found here – https://newsroom.shropshire.gov.uk/2020/12/support-families-struggling-winter/
This offer sits alongside a suite of funding opportunities, that have been created to support some of Shropshire’s most vulnerable individuals and households. This includes the Local Support and Prevention Fund (LSPF) and the Local Authority Emergency Grant for Food and Essential Supplies. Families and individuals who are struggling and would like to access help and support can contact the council’s Welfare Support Team on 0345 678 9028.
Shropshire Council have recently developed a guide which aims to support residents with matters concerning Work, Skills and Money. The guide covers the whole cycle of job loss, financial support, housing, and upskilling for people who are looking for work. The guide can be located via the following link – https://www.shropshire.gov.uk/coronavirus/information-for-the-public/work-skills-and-money-guide/
Concerns about business compliance to Covid-19 regulations: if there are any concerns about businesses adhering to Covid-19 regulations please email them to advicecompliance@shropshire.gov.uk
Shropshire Councils Covid-19 Helpline 0345 6789 028: this phoneline is designed to receive enquiries and concerns associated with Covid-19, of a non-medical nature.
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