Leader of Stroud District Council’s diary – 6th April

Note: This article is from 2020

Cllr Doina Cornell’s weekly diary as Leader of Stroud District Council:

Spring has definitely arrived, and many of us will be commemorating Easter this weekend as a time of renewal. I guess we’re all wondering what the world will look like when we come out the other side of this crisis, and I do hope we keep hold of the spirit of fellowship and community we’ve seen by neighbours across our district.

Council officers’ efforts this week have focussed on phoning people who might perhaps need extra help at this time, with hundreds of phone calls made last week – for the most part people do have their own support in place from friends, family and neighbours, but many have appreciated getting a call. It is the social contact we all miss as well as the more basic needs of food and medicine.

Another huge task faces officers to get millions of pounds in funding for local businesses out the door as part of the government support package, and the first grant payments will have been made this week. If you have a small business you should already have been contacted, but if you think you are eligible and haven’t heard, do get in touch. We’re also providing some funding for local groups supporting the community response effort, and payments for those are starting to be made. And finally, if you are struggling to pay council tax you may be eligible for council tax support. Do visit the council’s dedicated Coronavirus pages for more information, https://www.stroud.gov.uk/health-wellbeing/coronavirus or email customer.services@stroud.gov.uk or call 01453 766321. We’ve got extra officers working on responding to queries and will be happy to help, although bear with us as all of the customer services team are now working from home and at times there are a large number of calls coming through.

Do keep yourselves safe, and stick to the official advice. And my very best wishes to anyone who is suffering as a result of the virus.