Local public health directors have said they have received initial guidance on how to prepare for local lockdowns, should they be necessary in the event of future coronavirus outbreaks.
Health secretary Matt Hancock announced on Wednesday that by using the NHS track and trace system, small local outbreaks in places such as schools or apartment buildings could lead to those locations - and those who had come into contact with them - being ‘locked down’.
He said the Government would work with local directors of health to make ‘local judgements’, and that this was a ‘critical task’.
On Wednesday, May 27, Mr Hancock was asked who would identify whether specific areas needed to be locked down, and who would be responsible for enforcement.
He replied: “Making sure we make the local judgments, where the directors of public health have a critical role to play, and we tie that up with the national level intelligence we have, for instance from the testing programme, through the new Joint Biosecurity Centre, and through Public Health England.
“This is a critical task.
“It is something Public Health England has long experience in doing for all sorts of infectious disease outbreaks that happen in normal times, and it is all a part of the overall NHS test and trace system.”
In Notts, directors of public health are based at Nottinghamshire County Council and Nottingham City Council.
In a joint statement, Nottinghamshire County Council’s Director of Public Health Jonathan Gribbin and Nottingham City Council’s Director of Public Health, Alison Challenger, said: “We have received initial guidance from the Government about how they want to see local outbreak control plans coordinated, with local councils taking a central role.
“We expect to receive further guidance and details about funding to support this work in the coming weeks.
“We will work with Public Health England, district and borough councils, partners across the Local Resilience Forum, and with the Department of Health and Social Care, to ensure there is a coordinated approach towards reducing the spread of Coronavirus in Nottinghamshire.”
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