The need for clear messages on Covid-19 restrictions

Communicating with parents at a Brent primary school made me very aware of how important it was to be absolutely clear in messaging, leaving no room for ambiguity. Nevertheless I was often caught out when a message was misconstrued. This is partly because in our varied population there are many people still at the early stages of learning English and adults with literacy problems, but also because I did not take sufficient care.

A reader has pointed out that there is ambiguity in the above image with the 'Stay home' very clear but an attractive image of a picnic.  The accompanying text is very wordy.  The message does not directly address the burning issue of the use of parks and maintaining a 2 metre distance. Many of us are fearful that London's parks will be closed to the detriment of people who do not have gardens in which to exercise.

Perhaps a cross through the image would make more impact:

Othet neighbouring boroughs have made more effort to use visual messaging to ensure clarity of communication:

Brent Council has put similar messages up on its park entrances but I have not seen them on social media.

Brent Council found 'no cause for concern' at Bakkavor's Brent premises before conditions hit national headlines

The situation at Bakkavor's factories has hit the national news after the boss was filmed threatening workers who go sick with the sack. In the video he also admits that they 'we can't social distance in there' (the factory).

The firm supplied  Tesco, Sainsbury's Marks and Spencer and Waitrose amongst others.
 
Cllr Anton Georgiou, received this account by Brent Regulatory Services, on March 30th after he had raised concerns from his Alperton residents about the situation at Bakkavor sites in Brent:

A member of my team, visited these premises - Bakkavor (2 sites) this afternoon and confirmed that the business is following GOV.UK COVID-19 guidance. Below is a summary for your information:

“Bakkavor, 40, Cumberland Avenue.

Visit carried out unannounced. Had to sign in at security and besides filling in the usual visitors guest form and additional form specific to Coronavirus. Any visitor, driver or other person wanting to enter the site has to complete this questionnaire. On arriving at the reception I had to complete the full medical questionnaire (as standards for most high-risk food manufacturers) Technical Manager on site, site manager and health and safety manager present for brief outline of unannounced visit and scope of inspection.

I choose the areas that I wanted to enter and spoke to a number of staff, again which I selected, to ensure that employees were interviewed at random and not selected by management. I asked each staff member a number of questions, specific to the complaint that employees were forced to work even when unwell, or had been in self-isolation, or had relatives in their household who had symptoms/diagnosed with COVID-19. None of the employees said they, or any other staff they knew had been forced to work when unwell.

They knew the guidelines of Bakkavor’s COVID-19 procedure broadly and said if unwell, or a member of household would be unwell to report sick and self-isolate. During my visit I found good standards of social distancing wherever possible. In the staff canteen signs were displayed on each table to ‘sit separately and keep social distance’, which seemed to be adhered to.

Bakkavor (Katsouris Fresh Food) 267, Abbeydale Road.

Similar to the above

Visit carried out unannounced. Had to sign in at security and besides filling in the usual visitors guest form and additional form specific to Coronavirus. Any visitor, driver or other person wanting to enter the site has to complete this questionnaire. Met with Technical Manager on and briefly outlined of unannounced visit and scope of inspection.

I choose the areas that I wanted to enter and spoke to a number of staff, again which I selected, to ensure that employees were interviewed at random and not selected by management. I asked each staff member a number of questions, specific to the complaint that employees were forced to work even when unwell, or had been in self-isolation, or had relatives in their household who had symptoms/diagnosed with COVID-19. None of the employees said they, or any other staff they knew had been forced to work when unwell.

Staff were aware of Bakkavor’s COVID-19 procedure broadly and said if unwell, or a member of household would be unwell to report sick and self-isolate. During my visit I found good standards of social distancing wherever possible. In the staff canteen signs were displayed on each table to ‘sit separately and keep social distance’, which seemed to be adhered to.

I did not find any cause for concern at the time of my visit. Senior Enforcement Officer

One of the premises is in London Borough of Ealing and we have alerted them regarding concerns raised here in Brent.

The 'wherever possible' qualification is open to interpretation.

In a statement on its website London GMB said:

GMB has been provided with shocking video footage, from a management briefing at Bakkavor Meals London, where workers were told  "You can't socially distance here"  and managers displayed total disregard to the statement made by the TUC Joint Council, HSE and the CBI which makes clear that Employers ​,who remain open during the current crisis, must guarantee safe working conditions and minimise the risk of workers being exposed to COVID 19.

The statement from the TUC Joint Council, HSE and CBI  warned that employers who do not comply with the latest Public Health England guidance, including by not introducing social distancing measures, face being hit with enforcement notices and potential closure.

During the briefing a Bakkavor manager tells workers they have to "Keep Tesco happy or we won’t have jobs" and he is clearly failing to accept the responsibility Bakkavor should have for its staff. The footage shows Bakkavor's essential workers being told 150 jobs had already been lost and that there could be further losses and "those who didn't bother turning up would be the first to go"

Andre Marques GMB Organiser said:

GMB London is calling for urgent action to be taken to protect the safety of workers at Bakkavor Meals, including the immediate introduction of social distancing and proper Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). The footage seen by GMB, shows a Manager demonstrating how to put on a snood to keep their mouths covered but worryingly this is not proper PPE, as defined by the Personal Protective Equipment Regulation 2002, and also the Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992. Bakkavor workers were told to wash their snoods at least once a week and dry it on the radiator. This is not acceptable. 

There is absolutely no excuse for any Employer to be putting their staff at such risk and no excuse for not complying with the COVID-19 guidance.
 
GMB will not tolerate any employer bullying and threatening our Members. Bakkavor has displayed, in this video, disregard for process and disrespect for its employees. Bakkavor has now exposed that job losses will potentially be unfair dismissals and GMB will ensure any affected Members will supported and protected.
 
Bakkavor Meals London is a multi-million pound company who provide ready meals to Tesco, Sainsbury's and M&S and these essential workers deserve to be treated with respect and provided with a safe working environment and proper PPE.

The GMB is calling for temporary enhanced sick pay during the crisis to ensure employees do not suffer financial hardship if they need to self-isolate.   They are calling for re-organisation of production methods, even if that slows down production, and to ensure social distancing is in place in the canteen, other common areas and exit and entry points.

The stories behind Brent Mutual Aid

Thank you Robin Sivapalan for giving permission for me to republish this Facebook piece as a guest post on Wembley Matters

Only four weeks ago, on a Friday, the Brent Mutual Aid Facebook group was set up. A UCU union member living in Willesden put out a call to his Facebook friends asking who wanted to set one up in Brent. I answered “sure”, thinking “I suppose I should”. That weekend was non-stop on the phone, approving members – some 2,000 people by midweek - and these organised themselves into ward-based WhatApp groups, according to a logic from Lewisham.

The professional middle-class were straight out of the gate, leafleting Kensal Green, Mapesbury, Willesden Green, Brondesbury Park, Queens Park and Kilburn in days. Councillors in Alperton, Fryent / Queenbury, Wembley Central and Sudbury decided that they themselves were the mutual aid for their areas and their leaflets featured their names and council details. The Conservatives in Barnhill, challenging a lost by-election in the courts, launched a Tory mutual aid. Two Labour Councillors in Alperton, in a bid to undermine Brent’s one Lib Dem councillor, set up their own rival WhatsApp group. Some wards, four weeks later still have still not leafleted their wards, though in every case there is a lot of activity, often based on pre-existing community initiatives. Apart from Tory-controlled Kenton – where much of the elderly live.

In my ward, Welsh Harp, we staggered to the finish line of covering our ward only a week ago, but we benefited from the knowledge-sharing sessions that started the first Tuesday, towards making our plans; our printing was sourced free, we have cooperated with local councillors but have not been led by them, and have worked with existing neighbourhood groups. We have a multi-lingual team of 8 call-handlers, and have a volunteer group of 50 people, almost all of whom have only got to know each other through this process. But with the same emphasis in our leaflets – in English – on shopping, we can be certain we’re not doing what we might to involve and assist the migrant workers in our ward. Some honourable exceptions being Willesden Green who translated into 5 languages and Alperton into Gujerati.

Brent Council’s response to all this has been characterised by wariness and manoeuvring. The first reaction to the emergence of Mutual Aid groups was to consider them a liability. Some councillors countered this mentality with the idea of responsibility. The first meeting between the council and Mutual Aid groups took place on Monday the 30th March, 5 days after it was initially scheduled, and it was only confirmed on their part one hour before it was due to start. We were presented with a number of conditions over the weekend. I had to push back on the idea that I would be the only representative in attendance, despite a clear conversation explaining that this was not how we worked. Where the rest of the country had moved onto Zoom, we had to dial into a faceless call, chaired by a cabinet member of the council, a decision made unilaterally. Most of what this call consisted of was a briefing from the Assistant Chief Executive on the council’s emergency plan which had been met with derision by anyone who knew the voluntary sector. Organisations on their knees due to government cuts, passed on by the Labour Council, were tasked with leading the crisis, working from home, with skeleton teams. We were told what we’d already read online: that the Brent Council for Voluntary Service (CVS) - on the beg for premises all last year, subject to a year-long organisational review which started on the eve of the Covid Crisis - would be co-ordinating the Mutual Aid groups. Four weeks later, they’ve got a new director nobody knows; the 400 volunteers which the council spent weeks trying to register, undermining our volunteering pathways in the unorganised wards, are now directed back to us to organise.

The centre-piece of the council’s mobilisation – a direct counter to the government’s efforts to centralise relief – is the Food Aid “Hub” at the Bridge Park Leisure Centre. The council, before it had delivered 200 food packages, declared the capacity to deliver 10,000 a week. Its phoneline taking orders is staffed by valuable managers and staff from their main advice service. The “spokes”to the hub, the council now suggests be run by mutual aid groups, presenting this as cooperation, not organisational failure; a failed fait accompli, having sent out leaflets to every household in the borough. Within a day, before the leaflets even went out, their estimated delivery times went from 48 hours to 72. The rations they claimed would last two weeks, they now suggest a week. Nobody can give a clear answer as to who should call the council’s line or who should call for a food bank parcel – so now we’re spoilt for choice. And certainly nobody has pointed out the irony that the local Black Community – in one of the biggest mobilisations of protest in the history of Brent - is still fighting the council in the courts over the future of Bridge Park Community Centre, which the council is trying to sell from under their feet.

That is to paint too negative picture; Sufra, allocated the lead role for foodbanks in Brent, has been immensely open to cooperation, as has Elders Voice, the largest provider of services to the vulnerable in the borough. The stalemate is moving, but the main movers in the Mutual Aid network are the middle-classes who are using the semblance of borough-wide organisation to special plead for their charitable start-ups, greedy for the giants share of the council grant. Food cooked by an Indian couple on the Ealing Road, travels past Alperton, Stonebridge, Wembley and Neasden where white hands dole it out to their poor.


The Pakistan Community Centre in Willesden has been requisitioned by middle-class people who earlier in the week made people flock to collect onions and potatoes in boxes on the floor, while denying people other goods displayed on the table. That particular issue has been resolved but nonetheless it happened. The council briefs its elected members in private; councillors sit on our coordinating WhatsApp groups mainly as a conduit for the shifting council line - but conspicuously absent themselves from decision-making meetings about our structures. The council meets with us, and while purporting to be co-operating, has issued its plea for sanitary products, which are in short-supply at their hub, only through the councillor led “mutual aid” groups.

All very petty isn’t it. Off-putting. Tiring. Yes. Why can’t we all get along?

Only the affluent talk of unity – they insist it’s not political. They report on their neighbours who have the audacity to sit in their parks in large numbers, who live in overcrowded houses; they want everyone to stay at home apart from the people who serve them. The fact that 50 percent of nurses at our hospital have been confirmed with Covid will not be remedied by our weekly clap. The workers in our largest food-processing factory who are being threatened with the sack for staying at home would prefer a job than our charity. The two bus drivers in Willesden and Alperton who have died to transport the poor will not be resurrected over your Easter holiday break – which we need because we wouldn’t allow a look-in from those without a paid work-from-home job. The poor Indian worker who is bunkered in a sheltered housing scheme for the elderly in Kenton, sacked in the week of the lockdown for doing too much for the residents, will not get a callback from her Tory councillor - and the solidarity here hangs in the balance. The 19-year-old refugee, working a 24 hour shift at Northwick Park Hospital while a full time student, locked out of her home on Wednesday, and forced to move into a studio flat Alperton which costs much more than she earns, will not have her wages protected by Universal Credit. She will work cleaning our wards for next to nothing.

I am angry I know, and often unbearable. I have a tendency to lambast and storm. But I’ve pulled my weight and I weigh a lot. I’m a union organiser in this borough. My uncle is in hospital and my dad’s chemo has been cancelled. I do the shopping for my neighbour. I’m saying this to stave off attack. To be charitable is not to be good. To be compassionate and kind is not the only virtue. There are many amazing things happening under the mutual aid banner - signing up across the borough to the Open Collective banking system last night being one, an example of decentralized, cooperative mutual aid. I have no regrets in my ward and can’t wait to meet in person some of the wonderful people involved.

But an emergency response does not justify the drowning out all other considerations. Mutual aid cannot be mutual without challenging the structual injustices we face. And a scab Deliveroo army is not mutual aid. We’re only at the beginning of the crisis, so let’s take stock of more than food parcels, important as they are. And whoever will buy me my fags if I need to self-isolate, is my comrade.

Behind the scenes at Brent Council's food distribution depot

From Brent Council's YouTube channel

This video gives a behind-the-scenes look at Brent Council's food delivery operation at the Bridge Park Distribution Hub, where staff are working hard to package and deliver food parcels for vulnerable residents who cannot get access to food because of coronavirus.

Thanks to everyone who has donated food or supplies to the Bridge Park Distribution Hub. We have plenty of fresh food, but are always looking for non-perishable food donations, so if you’re thinking of making a non-perishable food donation, please call 020 8937 6792.

Carry on Brent - new arrangements for the continuation of Brent Council business during Covid-19 crisis

Annoucement from the Brent Council website

New regulations to relax some rules around local authority meetings until 7 May 2021 have now come into force.

Under the changes, which are part of the Coronavirus Act 2020, the requirement for Brent Council to hold an annual meeting, which was scheduled for May, has been removed.

Where replacement appointments would have been made at that meeting - including who will be Mayor – existing appointments will automatically be continued until the next annual meeting, although the new rules allow the council to change this at a Full Council meeting before then if it chooses.

The new rules also remove the need for councillors to be in one room, face-to-face, when making decisions.

This will allow for meetings to be held remotely and the council will be putting new protocols and a suitable video conferencing system in place later this month, enabling members of the press and the public to attend and where they have a right to do so, take part.

All papers for these meetings will be available online, and there is no longer a requirement to make printed copies available.

Cllr Muhammed Butt, Leader of Brent Council, said:

At a time when there is so much disruption to all our lives, councils like Brent have been asking for these changes and I am sure that they will help us to continue to keep the show on the road and carry out more of the council’s business as usual, in a way that is safe for everyone.

We’re putting in place a video conferencing facility and protocols that will continue to ensure a robust decision-making process with appropriate public participation to avoid delays on important decisions being taken.

Ensuring that decisions can still be made is something to be welcomed, as this will help ease any delays to projects, schemes and the wider impact on our local economy as we come out on the other side of the pandemic.

Changes to upcoming meetings:

15 April – Planning Committee – rescheduled to 6 May
20 April - Audit and Standards Advisory Committee – rescheduled to 5 May
21 April – Resources & Public Realm Scrutiny Committee - cancelled
22 April – Community & Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee - cancelled
27 April – Health & Wellbeing Board – cancelled    

Now online! The Bobby Moore Bridge tile murals at Wembley Park

1. The Olympic torch relay mural.

Guest post by Philip Grant, in a personal capacity.

 

If you have been a regular reader of “Wembley Matters” over the past year, you will know that these tile murals, celebrating Wembley Park’s sports and entertainment heritage, are a subject close to my heart. I have recently been putting together a detailed document about them, for the “local history articles” collection at Brent Archives, and this is now available for anyone to access online. If you are interested, you can find it here.

After a brief introduction about the origin of the tile murals, the article goes on to provide information and photographs of nearly all of the mural scenes included in this important public artwork. There are just a few, on the west wall of the subway, which I have not been able to find any good photographs of.

The illustrations show many scenes, like the one above, which you are not able to see at the moment. They also include the photograph below, of one of the original scenes, most of which has sadly been “lost”.

                                2. The full Stadium Pop Concerts mural scene, before 2006.

My article then gives details of how the murals have been covered up since 2013, apart from one put back on public display in 2019, and three displayed for a short time at the beginning of this year. 

It concludes with some encouraging words from Brent Council and Quintain at the temporary "reveal" of three mural scenes in January, which are evidence that they now acknowledge the importance of the tile murals. That gives some grounds for hope that their previous disregard for this heritage asset may be a thing of the past. At least they cannot pretend, when decisions about the Bobby Moore Bridge have to be made in future, that they did not realise the murals were there!

To bring us up to date below are scenes at Wembley in support of the NHS during the Coronavirus crisis. 

Philip Grant

3. Bobby Moore Bridge Says 'Thank you NHS' (Credit: Wembley Park)

 4. Bobby Moore Bridge supporting 'London Together' (Credit: Amanda Rose)

UPDATED: Support Unite's call for PPE for bus drivers

I spoke to two bus drivers at the nearby terminus today to express sympathy for the death of their colleagues from Covid-19 - they too are front-line workers who get other front-line workers to work. I support the call for drivers to have personal protective equipment (PPE).

Commentating on the tragic news that five London bus workers have now died of the coronavirus.  Unite regional secretary, Peter Kavanagh said:

Each of these deaths is a terrible tragedy and the thoughts of everyone at Unite goes to the families of the bus workers who have died of coronavirus.

Unite will assist the families of our members in every possible way during this terrible time.

Unite has been working continuously with Transport for London (TfL) and the operators to ensure the safety of drivers and others in the industry who are performing a heroic job in getting NHS and care workers to their places of work.

These measures include deep cleaning of buses, additional cleaning of touch points, the sealing of screens around the driver, the provision of hand sanitizer for all and placing the passenger seating closest to the driver out of bounds.

I have been in direct contact with the mayor of London who shares our view that bus drivers must be fully protected.

My officers are holding daily meetings with TfL, exploring further safety improvements and we are absolutely committed to doing everything in our power to make the driving of buses safe during this unprecedented crisis. 

We are also calling on the government to make provisions for transport workers in terms of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).

 If any driver has safety concerns, then it is imperative that they inform their employer and Unite representative immediately. The union will immediately act on all such concerns.

UPDATE:

TfL is piloting a new method of boarding buses to protect drivers. Passengers will board through the middle doors.  LINK

 

NEU: Combination of current Covid-19 measures, including school closures, should remain in place

IMMEDIATE NEU COMMENT ON MEDIA REPORTING OF UCL RESEARCH ON SCHOOL CLOSURES

7 April 2020

School Closure Policies

Throughout the current crisis, the NEU has called for policy decisions to be based on the findings of research and scientific enquiry. It welcomes the systematic review by Professor Viner and his colleagues of the effectiveness of school closure policies in dealing with coronavirus outbreaks, including Covid-19.

Kevin Courtney, Joint General Secretary of the NEU, said:

This is an important study, to which those who work in education will give the most careful consideration. We note that it provides no evidence on which to move back from the current strategy adopted by the UK. The review indicates that school closures are effective as part of a combination of tactics of social distancing and testing. This is the evidence from China, from Hong Kong, and from a modelling study carried out in the UK.

In relation to the findings of two Chinese studies, the review notes that both pieces of research conclude that the overall package of quarantine and social distancing, including school closure, was effective in reducing the epidemic in mainland China.

Summarising two further studies of Covid-19 in Hong Kong, the review notes that school closures were implemented at the same time as a number of other stringent social distancing measures. Collectively, these measures to held to have controlled the spread of the outbreak.

Finally, the review reports the findings of a UK research study, that a combination of measures, again including school closures, would be the most effective.

Everyone wants schools to be re-opened as soon as is safely possible. This can only happen on the basis of sound scientific reasoning that school closure is no longer necessary for the suppression of Covid-19. We are a long way from this point. The combination of measures that the government has introduced must remain in place.