Despite the current lockdown restrictions and the cancellation of many local planned celebrations, Cannock Chase Council is continuing to support the local community to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day.

When VE Day dawns on Friday 8 May it will be 75 years since the guns fell silent at the end of the war in Europe. Years of carnage and destruction had come to an end and millions of people took to the streets to celebrate peace, mourn their loved ones and to hope for the future.

Cannock Chase Council is aware of an incident which took place within the Chadsmoor area on Saturday 25 April, during which a number of COVID-19 breaches and Public Order offences were committed.

The Council’s CCTV team supported Staffordshire Police who were trying to disperse a number of motorcyclists congregating in the local area.  A Cannock man has since been jailed for 32 weeks after he admitted elbowing a police officer in the face and coughing into the face of a second officer stating he had COVID-19.

Urgent work to tackle health and safety concerns on the closed multi-storey car park in Cannock Town Centre is set to begin on Monday and is due to last a couple of weeks subject to weather conditions.

During a recent safety inspection of the multi-storey car park, it became clear that some of the fixings of the cladding panels on the external façade were found to be coming loose. Remedial action is therefore required to protect the public who might be passing close by.

Cannock Chase Council’s Cabinet agreed at their meeting yesterday (Thursday), to provide financial assistance to Inspiring healthy lifestyles (IHL) following the temporary closure of its Culture and Leisure Facilities.

IHL manages Chase Leisure Centre, Rugeley Leisure Centre, 5s Pavilion, the Prince of Wales Theatre, the Museum of Cannock Chase and community activities on behalf of the Council.

Whilst residents of Cannock Chase are following government guidelines and staying at home, there has been a massive increase in general waste and recycling.

Last week our waste and recycling teams collected 1,105 tonnes of waste and recycling, this is 16% above the amount that is normally collected at this time of year.

Cannock Chase Council has launched a COVID-19 Community Vulnerability Hub to provide targeted support for those most at risk during the coronavirus outbreak.

Cannock Chase Community Vulnerability Hub is targeting local residents considered most at risk as well the Council’s most vulnerable housing tenants. This will include residents who have no family, friends or trusted neighbours they can call upon during this unprecedented time. A new logo has been designed to identify the Hub.

Cannock Chase Council officers have been working hard to process the emergency grants received from government to help eligible businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The first payments were made on 6 April and it expects the vast majority of these grants to have been paid by the end of the month.

As of 15 April, the Council had made grant payments to businesses in the District worth £9 million, representing 40% of the anticipated number of eligible payments.

Cannock Chase Council and Staffordshire Police have received a number of reports about social gatherings that have taken place in local streets over the Easter weekend.

The Council and local police are politely reminding residents that they cannot socialise with friends or relatives who do not live in the same household. This includes not meeting others, including neighbours outside, unless strict social distancing measures are followed.

Support is still available to anyone affected by domestic abuse across Cannock Chase District during the Coronavirus lockdown. Local support services are offering alternative ways to provide help for those trapped in an abusive situation at home.

All those services which previously offered face-to-face or group support, including the New Era victim and perpetrator service commissioned by the Staffordshire Commissioner’s Office, can now be accessed online, by Skype or webchat where available, or by telephone.

Officers from Cannock Chase Council visited hundreds of businesses over the Easter bank holiday weekend to check that those required to be closed were complying with the law. 

Across the District officers visited places including shops, restaurants, gyms, nail bars, pubs, hotels, hair salons, playgrounds, cafes, churches, betting shops, tattooists, and car showrooms and none of them were found to be open illegally.

Council Officers were also on hand to give advice and support to places that are allowed to remain open including takeaways and certain shops.