I hope you had a safe and enjoyable Christmas, and would like to wish you a Happy New Year.
 
Infection rates are the highest they have ever been in Reading since the start of the pandemic 22 months ago. The latest data shows there are more than 1,400 COVID cases per 100,000 residents. Most of these cases are the highly transmissible Omicron variant.
 
We need to continue to take COVID seriously, by working together we can protect ourselves, our friends and family, community, local hospital, health and care services.

• Getting vaccinated is the best way to protect yourself against COVID, first, second and booster for maximum protection. There is good availability at the Broad Street Mall vaccination centre and appointments can be booked online or by calling 119.
• If you or someone you know needs help to get their COVID vaccine/booster, Reading Voluntary Action are working with us. They can arrange transport to and from the vaccination centre and language support. You can find more information on their website or call them on 0118 334 1091.
• Regularly wash your hands to prevent both COVID and flu, cover every part of your hands and fingers with hot soapy water, rinse well and dry using a clean towel. Where you don’t have access to soap and water, use alcohol gel but wash your hands properly as soon as you can. And keep surfaces and other touch points (e.g. door handles) clean.
• Wear a mask and ensure it covers your nose and your mouth.
• If you have visitors at home open the windows regularly for 10 minutes to reduce COVID in the air and prevent transmission.

• From Tuesday 11 January, testing changes for people WITHOUT symptoms. You will no longer need to confirm a positive lateral flow test with a PCR test. Find out more here.
• Also if you DON’T have symptoms, local supervised lateral flow tests are available at Reading Town Hall from 11am to 6.30pm, Monday to Saturday, with no appointment needed. However you can book online if you prefer.
• If you DO have COVID symptoms, you will need to take a PCR test. You can book one on the Government website here.

• Around 1 in 3 people with COVID don’t have symptoms and can spread the virus without knowing it.
• If you’ve had COVID once you can get it again.
• You can catch more than one variant.

Budget consultation
Our budget consultation for 2022/23 is open now, and we’d like your views to help shape it. 2021 was a tremendously tough year due to the continuing disruption caused by covid. However, we have continued to invest in Reading’s future, with major projects to benefit you for many years to come such as the exciting new leisure facilities, our £9 million investment into residential road and pavements, Reading’s new Green Park Station and the refurbishment of Reading West Station, along with an ambitious council house building programme to build more than 300 high quality, affordable homes.
 
We continue to look for opportunities to make efficiencies and this is an opportunity for all our residents, partners and local businesses to input into our budget proposals for the coming year. Please do take the opportunity to have your say on the budget consultation by Friday 14 January. We will be finalising and approving the budget in February 2022.

New leisure facilities update
I touched on the investment in new leisure facilities above, and the progress on the major work to construct a modern 25 metre, 6-lane community pool at Palmer Park was captured in drone footage on New Year’s Day. The stunning footage shows the latest progress on the Palmer Park construction site, with the outline of the new pool and the steel frame of the new reception and information hub clearly visible. You can watch this and find out more about the project below.

Could you be a care worker?
Our health and social care staff continue to work tirelessly to look after local people, and we are currently supporting recruitment for the care sector. If you are looking for a new job with flexible hours and are kind, patient and reliable, this could be for you. No previous experience is necessary, and training and support will be provided. For more information visit our website. Our video below shows the difference you could make to somebody's life.