Young people in Shropshire who have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic are being encouraged to access support and advice at a series of virtual-drop in sessions.
The council and its partner organisations are hosting two virtual drop ins via Zoom, on Saturday 15Â August (1pm-2pm) and Saturday 22Â August (1pm-2pm). Experts from Shropshire Council, Shropshire Mind, BEAM, Shropshire Public Health Nursing Service and the Midlands NHS Partnership Foundation Trust will be on hand to offer support and advice.
Virtual drop-in sessions for young people
Evidence has shown the huge impact that coronavirus and lockdown measures have had on young people in the UK. A recent study carried out by the charity Young Minds involving over 2,000 young people revealed:
80% of young people agreed that the coronavirus pandemic had made their mental health worse
87% of young people agreed that they had felt lonely or isolated during the lockdown period, even though 71% had been able to stay in touch with friends
Among more than 1,000 respondents who were accessing mental health support in the three months leading up the crisis, 31% said they were no longer able to access support but still needed it
Of those who had not been accessing support immediately before the crisis, 40% said that they had not looked for support but were struggling with their mental health
11% of respondents said that their mental health had improved during the crisis.
Ed Potter, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for children’s services said:
“We recognise that the past few months have affected thousands of children and young people across the county. The disruption caused by the premature end to the academic year has contributed to further anxiety, especially for those who are waiting for their A-Levels and GCSE results.
“In Shropshire there is help available, in terms of mental health support, Early Help advice, Family Information Service and Post-16 guidance.
“We want to reassure both young people and parents that you are not alone – help is available. These online drop-in sessions will provide young people with a safe and confidential space where they can chat openly about how they are feeling.”
For a full list of support services available to young people in Shropshire, click here
Accessing the virtual drop-in sessions
Two virtual drop-in sessions are being held via Zoom on Saturday 15Â August (1pm-2pm) and Saturday 22Â August (1pm-2pm).
These sessions are open to all young people across Shropshire to discuss how they are feeling in a safe and confidential space. Experts from Shropshire Council, Shropshire Mind, BEAM and the Shropshire Public Health Nurse service will be on hand to support and offer advice.
The Zoom sessions can be accessed via the followinglink
Mardol in Shrewsbury is to close to vehicles for three days, starting on Monday 17 August 2020, while resurfacing work is carried out.
The work is part of a scheme to improve footways, crossing points, road signs, street furniture and road surfaces in Shrewsbury town centre as part of the Shrewsbury Integrated Transport Package.
The work in the town centre began earlier this year, and has now continued after being suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The resurfacing of Mardol was scheduled to be carried out towards the end of 2020. However, Shropshire Council’s contractor is now able to carry out the work much earlier than planned, meaning the work can be completed – and the roads reopened – much sooner than hoped.
Government guidance has been routinely followed, and progress has been good despite a slightly reduced workforce, which has been working hard to keep the project moving.
Mark Barrow, Shropshire Council's director of place and enterprise, said:
"Being able to carry out this work sooner than planned is good news. It will mean that access for businesses and residents will be much improved, which is really important as the lockdown restrictions ease. It will also enable far more productive use of the machinery and equipment used for this type of work and - apart from localised installation of street furniture - reduces the need to close Mardol later in the year.
"We apologise in advance for any inconvenience caused during this closure, but thank people for their patience and understanding while this essential work is carried out. The intention is to return to normal at the earliest opportunity."
During the closure traffic will not be permitted between the hours of 7.30am and 4.30pm. Deliveries will be accommodated outside these hours, but parking won’t be allowed as this would obstruct the works and result in costly delays.
The council’s contractor will be speaking with individual businesses regarding deliveries and access.
The ICT team at Shropshire CouncilÂhaveÂtravelled 25,000km of their around theÂworldÂtripÂto raise money for Cancer Research UK. #Km4CancerÂhas seenÂthe teamÂtravelÂvirtuallyÂacross the globe after losing one of their colleagues to cancerÂinÂMay 2020.Â
KM4Cancer
Travelling by foot, bike,Ârowing boat, exercise bike, orÂanything thatÂrequires physical effort,Âthe team set out on their 53-day attempt on 1 JulyÂand have been racking up the kilometres ever since.ÂÂÂ
Andrew Boxall
Andrew Boxall, Shropshire Council's head of technology, said:ÂÂ
“We wanted to do something for charity after losing our friend and colleague Andrew Bennett to cancer. Andrew had many passions and a notable one was his love of trains, so when we found an around the world train journey we decided to attempt the same distance over the same period – which seemed sensible at the time
We’re now 15 days from finishing, and hope to achieve a far greater distance as we’ve been promised more donations if we can go further. The team have been amazing as we’re fitting our kilometres around busy work and home lives, so it’s been fantastic that we’ve been able to travel so far.”
The team track the distance travelled on their smartphones or built-in measuring devices and submit totals regularly to a central tracking system. A dashboard showing their location around the globe has been created to show where they would have been if this were an actual around the world trip, which you can find on the dedicated webpage -Âhttp://shropshire.gov.uk/shropshire-council/km4cancer/Â
The team have received donations from technology companies such as Nutanix and Sophos. Other companies have committed to donations totalling several thousand if the team can achieve a greater number of kilometres, particularly Hitachi Solutions and Liquid Logic.Â
Michele Leith, Shropshire Council's director of workforce and transformation, said:Â
“It’s been a fantastic effort by the team, and I’ve enjoyed doing my bit. In these times of home working, it’s easy to stay seated for a long period, and this gives a real incentive to get out and about. I’d like to thank all those who have already donated and urge anyone who can to please donate: the messages coming through on the donations page really motivate us to keep going, so thank you.”
Andrew Bennett, who sadly died in May 2020
Lee Chapman, Shropshire Council's Cabinet member for organisational transformation and digital infrastructure, said:Â
“I’ve been on my exercise bike and road bike, adding my totals to this fantastic effort which has become surprisingly competitive! Cancer Research is one of many charities that have had their funding slow in recent times and it’s great to be doing something to support them. We don’t need to emphasise the importance of tackling cancer as a lot of people will have been affected, but please consider sponsoring this great effort if you can – it really does mean a lot to the team, who have literally gone the extra mile in memory of their colleague and friend.”
There are currently 94 members of the Shropshire Council ICT team taking part, with each person aiming to travel at leastÂ46km each week – with most aiming for significantly more. The youngest participants are in their late teens, with the eldestÂnot wishing to share their age but noting, “old enough that this challenge has not been great for my knees” (anon).ÂÂ
Abbie Sylvester getting her steps in at Kynance Kove
Julie Edwards is one of the council’s software specialists and has travelled the furthest for the challenge, completing over 1,100km so far
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Julie Edwards
Chris Warrender is the council's lead security specialist and has been visiting some of Shropshire’s stately homes and walks to get his kilometres in
Katie Dawson’s son Evan and dog Sabine have accompanied mum on their walks for KM4Cancer. Katie is one of the team's specialist IT trainers.
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Lynda Smith is an integration and database specialist, amongst many areas of expertise. Lynda worked with Andrew for 20 years and has been one of many staff who were keen to show their support for KM4Cancer in his memory.
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Jonathan Fraser is an IT infrastructure engineer who has consistently cycled over 20km each day for KM4Cancer, whilst enjoying the beautiful Shropshire countryside
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Shropshire countryside
Nathan Hoare is a software specialist focussing on technologies used by residents to access services. Nathan got his bike out for KM4Cancer to get the kilometres up, and has been doing above and beyond his bit for the challenge ever since.
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Chris Warrender, Julie Edwards, Lynda Smith and Rob Gallagher went up the Long Mynd to get some kilometres (socially distancing of course)
