Articles in Covid-19

1 in 19 people in England likely now infected. 15 infected people in a busy supermarket. Risk of meeting someone with Covid now Critically High.

Covid-19 Risk Assessment: Week Ending 22 December 2023

Covid infection levels in England are Critically High, with around 1 in every 23 people in England infected with Covid, as of 13 December. Today, around 1 in every 19 people are likely to be infected with Covid, and we are expecting infection levels to continue to increase over the Christmas period. These are among the highest Covid levels ever seen in England, and it is essential that everyone takes precautions to avoid catching Covid.

As an example of the risk of catching Covid, a typical busy supermarket will have between 13 and 15 infected people breathing out virus for you to breathe in. In a full single decker bus, there will be 2 or 3 infected people breathing out virus. In a busy train carriage, there will be between 9 and 10 infected people breathing out virus. In these circumstances, unless you wear a respiratory filter mask, you are extremely likely to catch Covid. Cloth and surgical masks do not protect you.

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

Fair4All Education Transitions Surveys

Blue logo with Fair4All Education written in yellow, and BuDS Send Transitions Service written in blue around the logo

We know that moving from primary to secondary school can be daunting for young people. We want to improve this educational transition for children and young people with SEND and analyse what is currently available to support them and their carers. To help us do this, we want to hear from you! 

There are multiple surveys available depending on your current situation – a school professional, a support agency/service professional, a parent/carer of a young person with SEND and a young person with SEND. 

Everyone who completes survey 3 has the chance to be put into a draw to win a £50 One4All gift card, accepted in over 120 local stores. Entering the prize draw is optional. Please note the draw for the gift card is only for the ‘Parent/Carer Experiences During the Transition to Year 7

These surveys are anonymous – you do not have to give your name or any information that could identify you. To learn more about how we use and protect your data, see below.   

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A woman is talking on a laptop screen to another woman, who is writing down what the first person is saying

Tell Us About Your Experience of Disability Employment Services

Getting a job can be a really difficult time for disabled young people, and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Several organisations provide services that help disabled/SEND young people into work. If you have used one of these services, we would love to hear from you.

Bucks services that help disabled/SEND young people into work include DWP job coaches, Jobcentres, New Meaning, Macintyre, Talkback, and BuDS Reach4Work. There are lots of others, but these are the main services, which we call “disability employment support services”.

We would like to talk to you about your experience of using disability employment support services, focusing on any barriers you may have faced, and the quality of support you received. We would also like to talk to you if you wanted to use a disability employment support service, but couldn’t find one that would help you. We’d also like to hear any ideas that you may have about how to improve these services.

If you’d like to get involved, please click the button below, complete the short form, and we will be in touch with you. If you’d like to know more, please keep reading.

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BuDS flags and gazebo at an event in the background with blurry view of event goers in the foreground

Volunteer at the Chiltern Open Air Museum’s Halloween Event

Do you want to help support disabled people and get to attend an amazing event? BuDS is looking for event volunteers for the Chiltern Open Air Museum’s Halloween Event, on Friday 27th October 2023.

The Halloween Spectacular Event is back on Friday 27th October this year, it will be an evening filled with spooky fun for all ages in the unique and atmospheric setting of the Museum’s historic buildings and woods. BuDS volunteers will get free admission to the whole site, and plenty of free time to enjoy the event and museum.

BuDS is excited to support this event to be more inclusive and accessible for all disabled people. We will be supporting disabled visitors, staffing viewing areas, and providing an emergency quiet space. There will be a wide range of roles to suit everyone, even if you can only volunteer for an hour.

If you’d like to be part of the volunteer team for this amazing event, please fill in this expression of interest form, and we will be in touch! Disabled people are very welcome to volunteer, and we have a wide range of roles to suit everyone.

If you don’t want to fill in the form, you can email volunteering@buds.org.uk or leave us a voicemail on 01494 211179

A group of people in blue BuDS polo shirts standing in a field in front of a blue gazebo with a yellow banner reading "Buckinghamshire Disability Service". A historic building is visible in the background.
BuDS Volunteers at COAM Green Festival in July 2023

1 in 37 people in England now infected. 9 infected people in a busy supermarket. Risk of meeting someone with Covid remains Extremely High.

Covid-19 Risk Assessment: Week Ending 11 September 2023

Covid infection levels in England continue their relentless slow increase, with around 1 in every 37 people in England now infected with Covid. (This is also the rate and risk for Bucks). As an example of the risk of catching Covid, a typical busy supermarket will have between 6 and 11 infected people breathing out virus for you to breathe in. The risk level remains Extremely High.

Remember, Covid is airborne: the virus spreads mainly through the air. An infected person in an unventilated place creates a large invisible cloud of virus which hangs in the air like smoke, ready for you to breathe in. Because the NHS has not improved the ventilation in its buildings, hospitals and GP practices are extremely dangerous places to catch Covid. NHS staff are now required to work even if they have Covid and there are no Covid precautions in place at most NHS buildings. Do avoid hospitals and GP practices unless your visit is essential and wear a tight-fitted filter mask (FFP2 or FFP3) or respirator all the time if you have to go there.

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A learning disabled white man wearing a hi-vis jacket. He is holding an engineering tool, and machinery can be seen in the background. He could be a factory or garage worker.

How Good Are Bucks Services At Helping Young Disabled People Get A Job?

Blue logo with Reach4Work written in yellow, and BuDS Send Transitions Service written in blue around the logo

Getting a job can be a really difficult time for disabled young people, and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Several organisations provide services that help disabled/SEND young people into work. If you have used one of these services, we would love to hear from you.

Bucks services that help disabled/SEND young people into work include DWP job coaches, Jobcentres, New Meaning, Macintyre, Talkback, and BuDS Reach4Work. There are lots of others, but these are the main services, which we call “disability employment support services”.

You can help in two ways:

We would like to hear from you about your experience of using disability employment support services, focusing on any barriers you may have faced, and the quality of support you received. We would also like to hear from you if you wanted to use a disability employment support service, but couldn’t find one that would help you. We’d also like to hear any ideas that you may have about how to improve these services. Read on if you have any further questions.

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

Moving Up To Year 7: How Was It For Your Child?

The logo of the BuDS SEND Transitions Service. This is a blue circle with the words Fair4All Education in gold inside it, surrounded the words BuDS SEND Transitions Service in blue

Moving up to year 7 can be a really difficult time for many children, especially those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). We are working to improve the year 6 to year 7 experience for disabled and SEND children, and we would really like your help.

We would like to talk to you about the year 6 to year 7 transition, focusing on any barriers your child may have faced, the quality of support your child received, and hear any ideas that you may have about how to improve the transition. This will happen by a video call with a member of our friendly team, at a time that is convenient for you. If you’d like to get involved, please click the button below, complete the short form, and we will be in touch with you. If you’d like to know more, please keep reading.

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1 in 39 people in England now infected. 9 infected people in a busy supermarket. Risk of meeting someone with Covid remains Extremely High.

Covid-19 Risk Assessment: Week Ending 4 September 2023

Covid infection levels in England relentlessly continue to rise, with around 1 in every 39 people in England now infected with Covid. (This is also the rate and risk for Bucks). As an example of the risk of catching Covid, a typical busy supermarket will have between 6 and 11 infected people breathing out virus for you to breathe in. Remember, Covid spreads mainly through the air.

The risk level remains Extremely High. Infection levels are now the same as they were in mid-December 2022, at the beginning of the huge winter wave. If current trends continue, we should reach Critically High levels (more than 1 in every 25 people infected) in the next 6 to 8 weeks.

We are still seeing a steady week-on-week increase in Covid infections rather than a very steep peak. This suggests that the new Covid variant BA.2.86 is not yet infecting large numbers of people. A new variant which is highly infectious and escapes previous immunity usually causes a very sharp peak in infections. However, the criminal lack of Covid surveillance in the UK makes it hard to be sure.  

Alert: Hospitals and GP practices are extremely dangerous places to catch Covid. NHS staff are now required to work even if they have Covid and there are no Covid precautions in place at most NHS buildings. Do avoid hospitals and GP practices unless your visit is essential and wear a tight-fitted filter mask (FFP2 or FFP3) or respirator all the time if you have to go there.

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1 in 44 people in England now infected. 7 infected people in a busy supermarket. Risk of meeting someone with Covid rises, and remains Extremely High.

Covid-19 Risk Assessment: Week Ending 28 August 2023

The risk of meeting a Covid-infected person in your everyday life remains Extremely High. The next wave of Covid continues to build, with around 1 in every 44 people in England now infected with Covid. (This is also the rate and risk for Bucks). The number of hospital patients infected with Covid, both in Bucks and nationally, also continues to rise very sharply.

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.

It is likely that this continuing rise in Covid-infected people is being driven by a new variant, BA.2.86, and by waning immunity to by existing variants.

Hospitals and GP practices remain extremely dangerous places to catch Covid. NHS staff are now required to work even if they have Covid and there are no Covid precautions in place at most NHS buildings. Do avoid hospitals and GP practices unless your visit is essential and wear a tight-fitted filter mask (FFP2 or FFP3) all the time if you have to go there.

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Covid-19 Risk Assessment: Week Ending 21 August 2023

We’ve raised the risk of meeting a Covid-infected person in your everyday life to Extremely High. The next wave of Covid continues to build, with around 1 in every 50 people in England now infected with Covid. (This is also the rate and risk for Bucks). The number of hospital patients infected with Covid, both in Bucks and nationally, also continues to rise very sharply.

As an example of the risk of catching Covid, a typical busy supermarket will have between 5 and 8 infected people breathing out virus which you could catch.

Because of the limited number of virus tests being done, we don’t know whether this continuing rise in Covid-infected people is being driven by the new variant, BA.2.86 or by existing variants, or both.

Hospitals and GP practices remain the most dangerous places to catch Covid. NHS staff are now required to work even if they have Covid and there are no Covid precautions in place at most NHS buildings. Do avoid hospitals and GP practices unless your visit is essential and wear a tight-fitted filter mask (FFP2 or FFP3) all the time if you have to go there.

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