Newsletter to Members – March 2021

Hello Everyone,

Well, here we are still in the full lockdown due to the spread of the virus, I do hope everyone is keeping safe and remaining upbeat. It seems a long time since Christmas and in some ways a long time to restrictions being lifted however there does seem to be hope on the horizon.

The vaccination programme does seem to have taken off in our country and I suspect most of our members will have had their first jab.

The government published a road map to unlock the current restrictions towards the end of February and the following points are noted in relation to our group.

• 29th March
• The stay-at-home rule will be relaxed, the rule of six will apply outdoors however there will still be no indoor mixing

• 12th April
• Community Centres will be allowed to reopen however the rule of six will still apply and guidance will remain for no indoor mixing

• 17th May
• Events indoors limited to a maximum of 30 people

• 21st June
• Most restrictions removed and society can prepare to return to a more normal routine

Of course, all the above dates are subject to continual review and could be put back further if the virus doesn’t come under control.

Given the above we don’t think we will be able to restart the group until July given that even in June the date would be too late to accommodate a meeting that month, having reviewed the position with Jane & David and given that we don’t normally meet in August our proposal is to restart the group in September and hold 4 meetings this year.

By that time, we really should know if everyone has had the second vaccine dose and if this is curtailing the spread of the virus. We also need to know what the actual community centre plans are, not just with people attending but if the other facilities such as the kitchen will be available for refreshments and what we can and can’t display. It is very important for members to understand what will be expected of them when attending and that they have all the information to make their own judgment on attendance. Delaying until September would allow is to properly plan meeting dates for the rest of the year, decide on what events we are going run e.g., speakers or displays and allow us time to assess how many people will return and therefore plan for 2022.

So, in simple terms the group now plan to restart in September with it first meeting with meetings thereafter in October, November and December. Once we have details back from the Community Centre in early April, we will notify every one of the dates and times of the meetings and of any speakers or displays that area planned.

Tang Hall 100
Over the past weeks Jane has been compiling some of our old photographs to celebrate 100 years since the first houses started to be built on the Tang Hall Estate We aim to produce a pack of 5 postcards to commemorate the event, packs will then be put on sale to the general public in order to raise funds for the group More on this when we have details back from the printers.

Donations
Several members have made donations to the group over the last few months and I would like to thanks anyone who has given to this cause, it has helped us keep a respectable balance in the account.

If anyone has any further views or ideas please contact Jane on 01904 345942 or you can email me at trevorpool1@gmail.com

We will endeavour to keep members informed of any further developments over the coming weeks, In the interim please stay safe and keep well and try to look forward hopefully to a better 2021.

Kind Regards
Trevor Pool
Treasurer