Civic leaders’ plea as new national measures imposed

Civic leaders have once again urged residents to work with them to get coronavirus under control as Government-imposed restrictions come into force.

A vote in parliament today (Wednesday, November 4) gave approval to the restrictions which will come into force 00:01 am on Thursday, November 5. They are scheduled to last until Wednesday, December 2.

Some services provided by the Council will be affected by the new measures. Council leisure facilities will have to close for the duration of the lockdown.

However, some services are continuing to operate. Both recycling centres in Blackburn with Darwen will be open as usual, and bin collections will also continue as normal.

Blackburn and Darwen Market food stalls will be able to open for both takeaway and delivery, but unfortunately other non-food stalls will have to close as they are not classed as essential under the new government regulations.

Our libraries’ doors will be closed but there will be a limited remote service. The libraries are also offering a ‘click and collect’ service where you can pick the books up from the door at an agreed time. At Blackburn Library,  we will be able to offer limited computer access for those members of the public who struggle to access digital services from home.  Please note that this should be booked in advance on (01254) 661221, and time will be limited to 45 minute slots.

The Council’s Help Hub is also still operating during this time to provide support to the most vulnerable people.

Full details about the restrictions, business closures and further updates about council services are available online.

In a joint statement,  Leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council, Councillor Mohammed Khan, Chief Executive Denise Park and Public Health Director Dominic Harrison said:

We know residents and businesses are sick and tired of this terrible virus and we know the devastating impact further restrictions imposed by the government will have on us especially our businesses.

So we urge residents to continue to work with us and do everything they can to help stop the spread of the virus. Please stay at home as much as possible and don’t mix with people you don’t live with.

We also urge the government to work with us and our neighbouring authorities to substantially improve the tools we need to control the virus. We do not want to see a continual cycle of relaxing measures then tightening them up again. They need to use this time to help turn the tide on this pandemic.

We are especially concerned about our local businesses which have suffered terribly over the course of the last few months.

Our businesses need as much support as possible.  We will do our absolute best to move any help forward as quickly as possible as soon as we receive the funding.

This awful situation will only go on longer if people break the rules, risking further spread of the virus and causing more illness and economic pain.

Please we all need to work together and help each other. The basics of washing hands, wearing a face covering, keeping 2m from others, getting a test if you have symptoms and self-isolating when told to do so, are simple steps and need to be adhered to. Together we believe we can do this and make progress to moving towards more pleasant times.