Articles in News

Articles in Covid-19

1 in 59 people in Bucks now infected. 5 infected people in a busy supermarket. Risk of meeting someone with Covid remains Very High.

Covid-19 Risk Assessment: Week Ending 8 May 2023

Ben Clark

The risk of meeting a Covid-infected person in your everyday life this week remains Very High. At least 1 in every 59 people in Bucks have Covid.

As an example of the risk of catching Covid, a typical busy supermarket will have between 5 and 9 infected people breathing out virus which you could catch.

We are still in the trough between Covid waves. There are very early signs of an increase in the number of infected people. Very tentatively, we could see cases starting to increase over the next two to three weeks (to the end of May), and potentially a new peak of infections in June.

This ‘next wave’ may be driven by sub-variants of the XBB Covid variant, or by older variants for which people have lost their temporary immunity, or a mixture of both.

BuDS continues to recommend that disabled and clinically vulnerable people avoid indoor spaces unless they are wearing a filter mask (FFP2/3). For more advice on how to avoid catching Covid, use this link.

For more Covid information and help, please contact BuDS and we will be happy to help.

This article was edited on 9 May to take into account the late publication of the Zoe Covid Study data.

A learning disabled child smiling into the camera and holding up her hands, which are brightly painted with several colours

Moving Through Key Educational Transitions as a Disabled Young Person: The Education Workstream of the SEND Transitions Service

Ben Clark

The BuDS SEND Transitions Service is a three-year project funded by The Rothschild Foundation. The purpose of the SEND Transitions Service is to improve the experience of disabled children and young people moving through key transitions within school education and from school education into work or further/higher education. 

The SEND Transitions Service is made up of workstreams from a number of BuDS projects, principally Fair4All Education and Reach4Work. This page explains the Education workstream, which is within the BuDS Fair4All Education project. 

Read More
A line graph showing the number of infected people in Bucks recorded by the ONS Infection Survey (green line), and the Zoe Covid Study (orange line). The ONS line ends in early March 2023, and is replaced by markers suggesting a wave of Covid infections in March and April 2023. This is shown with blue crosses.

The March & April 2023 Covid Wave In Bucks

Ben Clark

Since the ONS Infection Survey was cancelled in early March 2023, there has been no fully reliable way to work out how many people in Bucks have Covid. However, BuDS has been able to use the Zoe Covid Study data to calculate a likely number of infections since the ONS Survey ended. This article explains the March and April 2023 Covid wave in Bucks, based on BuDS’ calculations.

Read More
1 in 56 people in Bucks now infected. 6 infected people in a busy supermarket. Risk of meeting someone with Covid remains Very High.

Covid-19 Risk Assessment: Week Ending 1 May 2023

Ben Clark

The risk of meeting a Covid-infected person in your everyday life this week remains Very High. Around 1 in every 56 people in Bucks have Covid.

As an example of the risk of catching Covid, a typical busy supermarket will have between 6 and 11 infected people breathing out virus which you could catch.

We are now in the trough between Covid waves, and infection levels are probably as low as they are going to get. The next Covid wave will start to build soon.

BuDS continues to recommend that disabled and clinically vulnerable people avoid indoor spaces unless they are wearing a filter mask (FFP2/3). For more advice on how to avoid catching Covid, use this link.

This data is based on the Zoe Health Study for Covid-19, adjusted to take account of its limited coverage. To learn more about this, use this link.

For more Covid information and help, please contact BuDS and we will be happy to help.

A man and a woman sitting on a low wall talking happily with sand dunes in the background. Both the man and the woman have prosthetic left legs.

Happy Birthday BuDDies!

Ben Clark
The blue and yellow BuDDies logo. It is a circular logo with the word 'BuDDies' in the centre above an image of two speech bubbles, one of which has a heart in it.

BuDDies, our befriending service for disabled people, is three years old today (Monday 24 April). Started as a response to the Covid lockdowns in 2020, it is now a permanent project continuing to help scores of lonely and isolated disabled people across Buckinghamshire and beyond. BuDDies is the only fully safeguarded befriending service in Bucks that can communicate with disabled people in the way that best suits them, including BSL, messaging, and video calls. BuDDies also supports people with long-term and complex mental health conditions who are often unable to access other befriending services.

BuDDies are BuDS volunteers who call you regularly for a chat about anything you like. The calls are not therapy or counselling, just friendly conversation. You can talk about things that are troubling you, or just have a social chat. We will try to match you with a volunteer that suits your needs and the calls can be as often or as infrequent as you like, or just a one-off. To learn more about BuDDies, or to ask for a BuDDy, click here.

Read More
1 in 57 people in Bucks now infected. 5 infected people in a busy supermarket. Risk of meeting someone with Covid now Very High.

Covid-19 Risk Assessment: Week Ending 24 April 2023

Ben Clark

The risk of meeting a Covid-infected person in your everyday life this week is Very High, as the latest wave continues to decline. Around 1 in every 57 people in Bucks have Covid.

As an example of the risk of catching Covid, a typical busy supermarket will have between 5 and 10 infected people breathing out virus which you could catch.

The current wave of infection is now well past its peak, and will probably continue to decline over the next few weeks. However, the risk of meeting a Covid-infected person will probably remain Very High for the rest of April.

BuDS continues to recommend that disabled and clinically vulnerable people avoid indoor spaces unless they are wearing a filter mask (FFP2/3). For more advice on how to avoid catching Covid, use this link.

This data is based on the Zoe Health Study for Covid-19, adjusted to take account of its limited coverage. To learn more about this, use this link.

For more Covid information and help, please contact BuDS and we will be happy to help.

A person looking at a laptop. On the laptop screen are pictures of 4 people in a video call.

Why Is Now The Best Time To Volunteer & Join Reach4Work?

Ben Clark

Written by David Bennett

Disclaimer: this is a personal blog by a BuDS member. The views expressed are personal, and don’t necessarily represent those of BuDS or our Trustees.

The Covid pandemic triggered a truly remarkable effect upon the workplace. Before Covid, everybody was expected to attend an office and sit at a desk where they could be seen to be “working”. In some enlightened workplaces, the advent of remote communication technology allowed employees to work from home. This managerial concession had led to some workers being allowed to occasionally work from home when circumstances demanded it. Indeed, there were some that were allowed to work 100% from home but these were the exception rather than the rule. With the onset of the pandemic, it became imperative if work was to continue, then employees had to be enabled to work from home. Due to technological advances, this proved far easier than managers thought. 

Read More
A disabled person using a power wheelchair seen about to enter a community centre, which is being used as a polling station

Covid Risks When Voting In Person

Ben Clark

People wearing masks when voting in person during elections may be asked by the election staff to remove their masks for an identity check. Taking your mask off exposes you to a higher risk of catching Covid, especially as there will be no Covid precautions in polling stations.

If you refuse to remove your mask when requested, it is likely that the election staff will not issue a ballot slip as you will not have passed the new identity check for elections. This means you will not be able to vote.

It is not yet certain how many polling stations will request people to remove their masks – BuDS is making urgent enquiries of the Electoral Commission. However, it is safer for you to assume that you will be asked to remove your mask if voting in person.

If you do not wish to be exposed to a higher risk of catching Covid by removing your mask in this way, BuDS recommends the following:

Read More
1 in 50 people in Bucks now infected. 6 infected people in a busy supermarket. Risk of meeting someone with Covid remains Extremely High.

Covid-19 Risk Assessment: Week Ending 17 April 2023

Ben Clark

The risk of meeting a Covid-infected person in your everyday life this week remains Extremely High, as the latest wave continues to decline. Around 1 in every 50 people in Bucks have Covid.

As an example of the risk of catching Covid, a typical busy supermarket will have between 6 and 11 infected people breathing out virus which you could catch.

The current wave of infection is now well past its peak, and will probably continue to decline over the next few weeks. However, the risk of meeting a Covid-infected person will probably remain Extremely or Very High for the rest of April.

BuDS continues to recommend that disabled and clinically vulnerable people avoid indoor spaces unless they are wearing a filter mask (FFP2/3). For more advice on how to avoid catching Covid, use this link.

This data is based on the Zoe Health Study for Covid-19, adjusted to take account of its limited coverage. To learn more about this, use this link.

For more Covid information and help, please contact BuDS and we will be happy to help.