Keeping you safe in Peterborough city centre

The city council has been working hard with the Combined Authority, Opportunity Peterborough and Peterborough Positive over the past few weeks to give businesses the support and guidance they need to re-open confidently, and in a way that’s COVID-safe, writes leader of Peterborough City Council John Holdich.

I know many of you will be delighted that the city centre is opening up again, while others will be a bit more cautious about venturing out. That’s why we’re putting lots of measures in place to help keep you safe, like pop-up cycle lanes, wider pavements, more street cleaning, floor and bench markings which show you how to keep a safe distance from others, and we’ll be continuing free parking in all council-owned car parks until the end of June.

And to welcome you back to the city, a number of our Covid-19 coordination hub volunteers are giving up their free time to act as volunteer marshals for the first week – supported by council officers. They’ll be on hand to guide you through the new measures, but more importantly they’re there to make your shopping trip a happy and safe one.

You can see all the details of the changes taking place in the city centre on our website at www.peterborough.gov.uk/besmart-stayapart and we’ll be sharing tips and advice on our social media pages. This will include things like checking in advance that the shops you want to visit are open, avoiding peak times of 11am to 2pm, walking and cycling if travelling short distances and reminders to wear a face covering on public transport.

Please share this information with your friends and family who may be planning a visit, especially those who don’t have access to the internet.

By shopping local you will be supporting our great city businesses, protecting local jobs and helping our economy to bounce back from the pandemic.

You may be aware that this week is National Carers Week and in Peterborough we’ll be helping to promote the campaign's main aim of making caring visible.

Carers are so vital to our communities, supporting family members, friends or neighbours. There are around 20,000 registered carers across Peterborough of all ages, but I know the number is even higher, as many people who carry out caring responsibilities don’t even consider themselves as ‘carers’. They see themselves as a mum, dad, sister or brother or a friend - how often do we hear people saying ‘I’m only doing what anyone would do’.

Being a carer – even for someone you love - can be tough. So we want all our carers out there to know, no matter who you are, that there is help available. Visit our website for more information (web link for online version - https://fis.peterborough.gov.uk/kb5/peterborough/directory/adult.page?adultchannel=8)

We don’t recognise or celebrate the incredible work of our carers enough, and so I want to take the opportunity this week to say thank you for everything that you do.

Bus services across the city are returning to normal now, but social distancing measures mean there is a reduction in the number of people who can travel at any one time.

As a result of this and to help increasing numbers of people get to work in the mornings, bus operators will no longer accept concessionary passes before 9.30am from Monday (15June).

At the start of the lockdown we worked with operators to relax restrictions on when people could use the concessionary bus passes. This meant people could get in early to access reserved shopping slots offered to older or more vulnerable residents in supermarkets.

As time has passed we no longer have shortages of essential foods or other items, and many supermarkets who are offering preferential home delivery slots for very vulnerable people, have stopped their specific opening times for different groups. So now is the time to change. As always, we’d be happy to hear your feedback on this.

Finally, if you have items of furniture you no longer need, please consider donating them so they can be used to furnish homes for people in housing need.

When families on low incomes need essential items such as beds, drawers, tables and chairs and wardrobes for a property, whether it’s temporary accommodation or a more permanent home, we work with local charity Care Zone to source these items for them.

The charity stopped taking donations during lockdown owing to the restrictions but has now restarted its work and is in urgent need of stock.

If you have items you would like to donate, please drop them off at Care Zone’s warehouse at Dodson House, Fengate, on Mondays and Fridays, 11am to 1pm. You can also call 01733 575083 for more information.