New Milton Advertiser 9th Oct 2020

10 · Friday 9th October 2020

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Top hotels boss slams ‘wrong’ Covid curfew

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Forest is rather unfair, given our very low infection rate. “Restaurateurs and landlords have invested a great deal in Covid-secure measures and re- duced capacity, and the loss of the extra hour reduces through- put, particularly for those that want a second sitting for dinner to come through, because it makes it very uneconomic.” Mr Hancock said he wel- comed the suggestion and add- ed: “Of course I understand the impact on the New Forest – some of the finest pubs in the country are in the New For- est. “We should keep this under review, because the whole point is to suppress the virus while having the minimum negative impact on the economy.” He added: “[We] would not have this in place unless we thought it was needed. The sci- ence is about how, late at night, people end up closer together and therefore spread the virus more, and this will not stay in place one minute longer than it needs to.” Commenting on how the first night of curfew had gone local- ly was James Hiley-Jones, the managing director of Green- close Hotels, which runs Carey’s Manor in Brockenhurst and the Montagu Arms in Beaulieu. He said on Twitter: “All smooth at curfew last night but last tables ordered fewer cours- es and less to drink. “In a week where we’ve seen business on the books drop for September as consumer confi - dence is rocked.”

Rural areas ‘hurt by effort to control city centre super pubs’

BY STAFF REPORTER

FORCING pubs and restau- rants to adhere to a 10pm curfew in a bid to curb the spread of the coronavirus is “a hammer blow” to the industry, a leading hospitality boss has claimed. Robin Hutson, chair and chief executive of the five-star Lime Wood Hotel in Lyndhurst, told the A&T that the new rule in- troduced by the prime minister on 24th September was unfair. His complaints were backed by claims from the New Forest’s tourism group that earnings have been hit by up to 30% from the new regulation. Mr Hutson, who is also the chair of Homegrown Hotels which owns The Pig in Brock- enhurst, said: “The government have got it completely wrong with this 10pm curfew – there is no scientific evidence to sup - port it. “In their crude attempt to curb city centre super pubs, they have unwittingly dealt a hammer blow to thousands of hospitality businesses in every corner of rural Britain. “The New Forest area is typi- cal of these areas with hundreds of small restaurants, hotels and country pubs affected.” He added: “The hospitality industry has already demon- CHRISTCHURCH residents who have been told to self-iso- late by NHS Test and Trace will receive support from a welfare team set up by BCP Council. Staff will contact anyone who has been notified that they have been near someone who has tested positive for corona- virus. The team will offer help and advice about how to self-iso- late, after assessing a resident’s individual needs. If they are vulnerable and do not have anyone nearby to help access food and prescriptions then it will bring in volunteers to help. Referrals can also be made to access priority supermarket delivery slots and, if on a low income, advice will be given about accessing the new Test A POPULAR fun run which raises thousands for a New Forest Scout troop has been cancelled due to the corona- virus. The Totton Santa Run nor- mally challenges participants to a 2.5km route through the town every December, cheered on by hundreds of locals who line the streets. The 5th New Forest North Scout Group, which organis- es the event, announced on its Facebook page that it could not proceed this year.

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Lime Wood Hotel boss Robin Hutson said there was no scientific evidence to support th e 10pm limit

strated that it can operate safe- ly since reopening in July and we have upheld and endorsed the hands, face and space mea- sures. “The government should see us as their principal safety ally rather than unfairly punishing us for the spikes caused by un- regulated gatherings.” Tourism group Go New For- est is also against the curfew and plans to lobby the govern- ment to review its decision. Go New Forest chief execu- tive Anthony Climpson told the A&T: “As the area’s lead tour- ism and hospitality body, we are lobbying hard for a change in the government’s 10pm cur- The statement said: “This decision has not been easily come to, but after careful con- sideration we have decided, in the interest of the health of the community and our volunteers, putting on a run at this time was not something we are able to move forward with. “Covid-19 this year presented many challenges and compro- mises that would have led to us putting on an event unrecog- nisable to that of the fun-filled runs we have hosted over the last four years.” Sam Crowe, director of pub- lic health for Dorset and BCP Councils, added: “I would en- courage residents to have a plan in place in case you need to self-isolate. Talk to your friends and family to ask if they can de- liver food andmedicines to you.” The helpline is 0300 123 7052 and is available 9am-5pm, Mon- day to Friday. and Trace benefit payment. Cllr Nicola Greene, cabinet member for Covid resilience, public health and education, said: “We understand that self-isolating may be diffi - cult for some of our residents and so our Togeth- er We Can team will be on hand to carry out a wel- fare check over the phone to ensure they have the support in place.”

few because since its inception our member businesses have suffered a further 20-30% reduc- tion in earnings. “The curfew disproportion- ately penalises food-led busi- nesses as opposed to drink-led businesses such as bars and pubs that don’t serve food. “With evening sittings being brought forward to meet the demands of the curfew, it is very difficult for lots of people to arrive for an evening meal at around 5.30pm. On the other hand, drinkers can start at any time of day.” He added: “The really chal- lenging issue is that social dis- tancing has already significant -

ly reduced capacity and yet demand is still as high as ever, so our wonderful local restau- rants are being forced to take a big double hit. “The issue is so bad Go New Forest has launched a special New Forest Eat Out 4 Less campaign to try and stimulate demand throughout the day to fill this extra loss of revenue.” Health secretary Matthew Hancock was challenged over the subject by New Forest West MP Sir Desmond Swayne in a Commons debate last week. Sir Desmond urged him to give local authorities the pow- er to decide curfews, saying: “A national curfew in the New

Forest birthing centre closes over virus fears

Support on hand for Test and Trace self-isolaters

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A BIRTHING centre in Ashurst has temporarily closed because of fears over unsafe staffing lev - els due to the pandemic. The New Forest Birth Centre, which is midwife-led, will shut until January 2021 when the de- cision will be reviewed by Uni- versity Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust which runs it. However, the trust stressed the change will not affect an- tenatal and post-natal services which will continue to run at the unit. A spokesperson said there were now fewer midwives and support staff at the facility. “Having reviewed our current and projected staffing levels over the next few months, we have concluded that we would not be able to adequately staff the centre,” she said. “The safety of our staff is also paramount and, owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, a number of our colleagues have been un- able to return to their substan- tive roles. “The decision to temporarily close the New Forest Birth Cen- tre has been taken to ensure we can continue to provide the safest possible care for our fam- ilies.” Staff will be transferred to the Princess Anne Hospital in Southampton and home birth services.

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The New Forest Birthing Centre is based at Ashurst Hospital

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On its Facebook page, the trust assured expectant moth- ers planning to have their babies at the New Forest centre they could discuss alternatives in- cluding the midwife-led Broad- lands Birth Centre within Prin- cess Anne and home births with their midwives. Some lamented the decision on social media, with one com- menting: “These homely region- al units are the perfect place for first-time mums to receive the support they need during the first few hours after birth, as they learn to breastfeed if they choose to. “No one has the time in large maternity hospitals.”

Another wrote: “So sad. I had both my children at the New Forest Birth Centre and have recommended it to all my friends ever since. Such a love- ly place, and the care was just faultless.” The New Forest Birth Cen- tre opened in September 2008 and is for women assessed as low-risk who want natural births. Facilities include birthing pools and support with breast- feeding and parenting. The centre is held in high re- gard in the area, and seeks to offer a calm, home-from-home environment, with views across the New Forest.

No presence for Santa run

School and GP surgeries confirm infection cases

Arriving October 2020

Kitchen and Living

CORONAVIRUS cases have been confirmed this week in the New Forest and Christchurch, affecting a school and two GP surgeries. Julie Turvey, headteacher at Hounsdown School in Totton, told the A&T that parents were notified on Monday after it was made aware of its first positive case. She said: “The school im- mediately liaised with both the Department for Education and Public Health England to ensure that the actions taken were in line with the require- ments of both organisations.

“Our school has a rigorous and robust risk assessment, with control measures which we are putting in place daily to ensure the safety of our com- munity. These exceed the na- tional requirements.” A letter sent to parents stat- ed that the affected member of the school community, and those who were identified as be - ing in close contact, were now in self-isolation. It added: “In this situation no students have been identified as close contacts and therefore no students have been asked to self-isolate. The school remains

open and your child should continue to attend as normal if they remain well.” Christchurch Medical Prac- tice, which runs the Orchard Surgery at Purewell and the Bransgore Medical Centre in the village’s Ringwood Road, announced on Sunday it would close them both for 14 days af- ter a team member fell ill. The practice also runs the Barn Surgery at Purewell and Burton Medical Centre in Salis- bury Road, which will both re- main open. A statement from Christ- church Medical Practice said: “All of the relevant branches have had a full chemical deep- clean. The staff member was not in a patient-facing role and therefore there is no increased risk to any of our patients.” It added: “Following strict government guidelines and advice from Public Health En- gland has meant that quite a large amount of our colleagues will also have to self-isolate for 14 days. This will mean as a practice we are operating under very limited resources.” The colleague was “comfort- able at home”, the statement added, and wanted to thank pa- tients who had sent well wishes.

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Hounsdown School notified parents of a ca se on Monday