Be Alert to Coronavirus Scams

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Here are just some of the coronavirus scams we are aware of, but please note that criminals come in all shapes and sizes and can contact you at the door, by phone, post or online

  • People offering miracle cures or vaccines for coronavirus – there is no specific treatment for coronavirus (COVID-19). Treatment aims to relieve the symptoms until you recover
  • Home cleaning services
  • People impersonating healthcare workers, claiming to be offering ‘home-testing’ for coronavirus – this is a scam and these kits are not currently available to buy
  • Emails saying that you can get a refund on taxes, utilities or similar are usually bogus and they are just after your personal and bank details
  • There are lots of fake products available to buy online that say they can protect you or cure coronavirus. These will not help and are designed to take your money
  • There are new mobile phone applications that claim to give you updates on the virus but instead, they lock your phone and demand a ransom
  • People offering to do your shopping or collecting medication and asking for money upfront and then disappearing

Your bank or the police will never ask for your bank details over the phone.

  • LATEST NEWS from Northumbria Police:
    There is a scam going around on social media where they send the victim a text message saying they have been seen out of their house on more than one occasion, which has resulted in them being fined £35. There is a link for the victim to click where they can enter their cards details.
    The scammer has sent a previous message which makes it appear to be from gov.uk so looks makes it look legitimate.
    Please beware and do not fall for this one

Tips to avoid being scammed:

  • Be cautious and listen to your instincts. Don’t be afraid to hang up, bin it, delete it or shut the door
  • Take your time; don’t be rushed
  • If someone claims to represent a charity, ask them for ID. Be suspicious of requests for money up front. If someone attempts to persuade you into accepting a service they are unlikely to be genuine. Check with family and friends before accepting offers of helps if you are unsure
  • If you are online, be aware of fake news and use trusted sources such as gov.uk or nhs.uk websites. Make sure you type the addresses in and don’t click on links in emails
  • Only purchase goods from legitimate retailers and take a moment to think before parting with money or personal information
  • Know who you’re dealing with – if you need help, talk to someone you know or get in touch with the organisations below.
  • Protect your financial information, especially from people you don’t know. Never give your bank card or PIN to a stranger

Contact information:

  • If you think you’ve been scammed, report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 and if you need advice, call the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 0808 223 1133. If you are in immediate danger, contact the police on 999.
  • Contact your bank if you think you have been scammed.
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Northumberland Communities Together

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Northumberland County Council is launching a new initiative – Northumberland Communities Together-  to support the phenomenal volunteering networks that have been rallying support across the county in response to COVID-19.

Find out more about Northumberland Communities Together

 

The three Food Bank sites in West Northumberland sites are closed to the general public due to coronavirus restrictions, but there is a delivery service for those that need it at this difficult time.

West Northumberland Food Bank

 

More useful information can be found at the links below.

NHS 111 – check if you have coronavirus symptoms

NHS coronavirus advice for everyone

Every Mind Matters – coronavirus and your mental health

Mental Health information from Healthwatch

Volunteer for Northumbria Healthcare

Changes to council services in Northumberland

Be alert to coronavirus scams

 

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Customer Notice 20 March 2020

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UPDATE Monday 23 March

As the government has asked for all cafes, pubs and restaurants to close, we cannot go ahead with our plans to open Cafe @ Burn Lane. Our office is open for shorter hours with most staff working from home. Please get in touch if you need to – we will get back to you although it may take us a little longer than usual. 

Like most other organisations, we are having to change the way we operate amid the coronavirus outbreak. Our office opening times are reducing so please bear with us if it takes us a little time to get back to you.

We have lots of regular customers and we wish to still support them and our community. From Monday 23 March Café @ Burn Lane opening times will reduce to 9.30am to 2.30pm.  We are taking the guidance from the government seriously and as such have removed some of our tables to provide a bigger distance between tables. Our hygiene regime is of the highest standard and we have commercial sanitising products for cleaning.

Hopefully warmer weather is on its way and we can get our outdoor seating back onto the patio. Then if you are having a walk you can have a coffee whilst still social distancing.

We are also encouraging people to use our takeaway service. Call ahead on 07864 692627 and we will have your order ready for you.

As we are a community café we wish to continue to support people and as such we are moving to producing takeaway meals which we can offer for home delivery; more details to follow soon.

We would appreciate all our customers if possible could pay by card .. Thank you

Supporting our communities and families who will be most impacted by the loss of income during this time is very important to us. If you would like to make a donation to the café we will use that money to provide meals for local families, especially those who are hardest hit by the school closures.  You could also choose to buy a gift voucher for when things are back to normal and you can come and enjoy a meal.

To finish, some good news  – CHIPs are back on the menu!

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SpeakUp2020 in the Healthwatch Northumberland Survey

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Healthwatch Northumberland has a survey each year, asking about your health and social care experiences in the previous 12 months. It might be a new year but your experiences from 2019 still matter. You can feed back as a patient or carer.

By sharing what went well for you, what might be improved and what is important to you, you can help the team set work priorities for the coming year and help make a difference to care services locally.

Share your views online or call 03332 408468 for a postal copy with freepost return.

More about Healthwatch Northumberland and how you can get involved.

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Community Information Morning February 2020

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Call in to our next Community Information Morning where you can pick up advice and information about health, wellbeing, transport, money and things going on in your area. This time we have Tynedale Hospice at Home, Northumberland Cancer Support Group, Alzheimers Society, Action on Hearing Loss, Healthwatch Northumberland and Macular Society coming along, plus help around Attendance Allowance and also Support Planners from Northumbria Healthcare.
Join us for a cuppa and a piece of cake in the Resource Room – just through the door from Cafe @ Burn Lane.

 

Adapt (NE) Community Information Morning

Wednesday 19 February 2020, 10.30am – 12.30pm

Adapt (NE), Burn Lane, Hexham NE46 3HN

Free entry, all welcome!

 

Dates for the rest of the year for your diary:

Wednesday 13 May, Wednesday 19 August and Wednesday 18 November

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Creating Space Craft Sessions 2020

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Creating Space is a new craft group for wellbeing taking place here at Adapt (NE) in Hexham. Run by local people, the group is looking for more members to make it viable in the longer term. This is a friendly and supportive space for those who might find getting crafty helps with low mood and improves wellbeing. The next sessions will take place on Thursdays 23 and 30 January and 7 February, between 9.30am and 11.30am. Please come along if you are interested or call Claire on 01434 600599 to find out more.

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Energy Advice Drop-in Session

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Citizens Advice Northumberland is holding an Energy Advice Drop-in Session here at Adapt (NE) on Monday 20 January, between 10.00am and 1.00pm, as part of the Big Energy Saving Week. Call in to Cafe @ Burn Lane/the Resource Room to speak to a specialist energy adviser about the energy costs within your home and see if you can start saving straight away! Bring along a recent energy bill if you can. No appointment is needed. All advice is confidential, impartial and free.

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Christmas and New Year Hours

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Christmas and New Year:
Our offices here at Adapt (NE) will close at 5.00pm on Monday 23 December and re-open on Thursday 2 January.

Cafe @ Burn Lane will close at 4.00pm on Monday 23 December, re-opening in the new year on Monday 6 January.

Thank you for all of your support and custom this year; we wish you all a happy and peaceful Christmas time.

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Job Vacancies: Community Link Workers

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Job Title: Community Link Worker (Social Prescriber)

Responsible to: Adapt (NE) and West Northumberland PCN

Hours: 37 hours per week, Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm. Full-time – open to Job Share

Location: GP surgeries across West Northumberland Primary Care Network

Salary: £23,761 per annum

Benefits: 25 days holiday per year, plus statutory holidays pro rata

 

This is an opportunity to be involved in delivering and supporting solutions for patients across West Northumberland. We are recruiting for two full time posts.

Please find below the Job Description/Person Specification and application form. Please tell us how you meet the person specification within the application form.

Completed applications to be returned by 5.00pm, Thursday 5 December 2019.

Interviews will be held at Adapt (NE), Burn Lane, Hexham on Friday 13 December 2019.

If you require any further information please contact Liz Prudhoe, Director, on 01434 600599.

 

Background

Since April 2019, the new GP Contract has enabled the development of locality-based Primary Care Networks (PCNs) with an aim to both support General Practice and to provide a more holistic approach to the needs of their patients by linking them to a wide range of health, social care and voluntary sector services in the community, often addressing factors such as housing, financial strain and social isolation.

Social Prescribing in Primary Care is designed to support GP practices, patients, their families and carers in navigating local voluntary, community and statutory services, supporting and empowering patients to take control of their health and wellbeing.

Funding has initially allowed recruitment of two Full Time posts – (Job Share is available) for Community Link Workers to serve the population of West Northumberland PCN, which if successful may expand in the near future.

West Northumberland PCN is a large network which represents 14 practices across the area, centred on Hexham but extending west-east from Haltwhistle to Ponteland, and north-south from Bellingham to Allendale. The clients themselves may live rurally beyond these areas.

The Community Link Worker will work across a number of allocated GP practices, in collaboration with practice-based Care Navigators. Although initially referrals are likely to be limited to those arising from the General Practice team, the aim of the Community Link Worker role is to provide non-medicalised support to clients.

Community Link Worker Job Description/Person Specification

Community Link Worker Letter

Community Link Worker Application Form

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Read our latest Annual Report

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We held our Annual General Meeting on 14 November where we reflected on the previous year’s work and finances. Led by Director Liz Prudhoe, incoming Chair Lorraine Hershon and Treasurer Darren Spencer, there was a review of our transport and advocacy services, Cafe @ Burn Lane and Healthwatch Northumberland, as well as our our other core services and volunteering programme.

Please see the 2018/19 Annual Report below or call us to receive a hard copy.

Adapt (NE) Annual Report 2018/19

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