A NEW Covid vaccine centre is being created in Middlewich.

Victoria Hall in Civic Way will be exclusively used to administer vaccinations for residents for at least the first three months of 2021.

Middlewich Town Council is very proud to be working with the NHS Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCCG) to provide this service in the town centre.

Cllr Mike Hunter, chairman of the council, said: “This is great news for the people of Middlewich. It means we won’t have to travel out of town to get vaccinated, which in turn means that it can all be done more quickly and efficiently. It is our civic and national duty to make sure we do our bit to beat this virus.”

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The council will be charging the CCCG the same rate as the NHS Blood and Transplant Service for their blood donation sessions, an agreement which is already in place.

The council will be providing cleaning and other support services to the CCCG team during the course of their hire of the hall.

Cllr Hunter added: “While the revenue raised will not cancel out the losses that Victoria Hall has suffered as a result of the pandemic, it has provided a welcome boost. It is this contract which has enabled the council to give back to the residents in the form of a council tax reduction – which we believe is vital in these difficult times.”

In light of the importance of the vaccination programme, and in line with lockdown restrictions, any existing bookings for the hall have now been cancelled and customers notified.

The full range of venue hire services will be resumed as soon as it is safe to do so.

Cllr Hunter said: “We are still a long way from safety. Until we have seen the back of this virus, we must continue to follow the advice and rules of lockdown. Together we can get through this.”

Chris Avery, senior corporate communications manager for the NHS Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Group said: “We understand that people are anxious to receive a Covid-19 vaccine as soon as possible. However, please don’t contact your GP practice, local hospital or council to seek a Covid-19 vaccine appointment – appointments cannot be made in this way.”

The NHS will contact people in the priority groups when it is their turn to receive the vaccine. People are urged not to contact the NHS to seek a vaccine before then.

Patients are asked to respond when they are invited for a vaccine and attend appointments when they are booked.

Everyone is urged to continue to wear a face covering and abide by social distancing and hand hygiene guidance as, until the vaccine has been fully rolled out, this is the most effective way to save lives.