Council rises to the challenges of Covid-19

The Government's lockdown announcement at the end of March meant an immediate change to all our lives - but the one constant is the support available to communities and businesses from the Borough Council.

The Council reacted quickly to offer reassurance and to make sure 'normal service' continued to operate, within guidelines, alongside the additional work generated by the response to Covid-19.

With Council buildings closed to the public and the majority of staff working from home, the delivery of services continued uninterrupted with figures up to early May showing that:

·         Contact centre staff responded to 4,719 call and 7,418 webforms

·         316,800 waste collections were carried out - and 25% more dry recycling was collected

·         Business grants totalling £21.6m were issued to over 1,900 High Peak businesses

·         We responded to 125 business enquiries and made contact with our biggest employers to understand how the situation is affecting them

·         2,259 benefits claims were processed

·         5,000 welfare calls were made to Carelink tenants - 700 a week

·         19 rough sleepers were found accommodation

·         The Coronavirus Information Hub on our website received 49,500+ visits - with 27,000 hits to the business financial support pages - and our average reach on Facebook was 15,000 per week

Councillor Anthony Mckeown, Leader of the Council, said: "This is an unprecedented situation that has affected every one of us in ways we probably couldn't have imagined and we are all having to adjust to different ways of living, working and learning.

"But none of us has to do this alone. Communities and individuals across the High Peak have risen to the new challenges we're facing magnificently and it is heart warming and humbling to see.

"For our part, the Council remains very much here to offer our support. Working with the voluntary sector and partners, we have been able to quickly and effectively respond to the challenges raised by the Coronavirus whilst maintaining our usual services in what can only be described as very usual circumstances.

"That is thanks to the resilience and hard work of our staff and partners who have shown their commitment to ensuring that we come through this as safely as possible. I commend them for all they have done and continue to do.

"Whilst we are not quite there yet, I know that this same spirit and determination will stand the High Peak in the best place to begin to recover as we gradually ease out of lockdown and slowly start to return to something akin to 'normal'."

For more information visit www.highpeak.gov.uk/Coronavirus