Safe and well campaign launched to help residents stay healthy this winter

With the clocks going back on 31st October, the nights are getting longer and the famous Greater Manchester weather is well and truly back. Stockport Council is working with health partners in a joint campaign to highlight a range of important information to help the people of Stockport stay safe and well this winter.

By working together across organisations, the council and its partners hope to share crucial information which can help people this winter. This will signpost where people can get information and support they need to address their health and wellbeing needs during the colder months by accessing the services they need support from.

The campaign broadly focuses on three aims: looking after yourself, looking after your home and looking after others.

By encouraging residents to take care of themselves, the partnership campaign hopes to boost take-up of the flu and COVID-19 booster vaccinations, as well as promote general good practice regarding healthcare such as how to help ease the symptoms of common ailments such as coughs and colds. It is also hoped that the campaign will raise awareness of the mental health support available in Stockport, including Pennine Care’s dedicated helpline and Healthy Minds service.

In terms of looking after the home, the campaign will focus on the support available to residents to help keep their homes warm this winter, including the Winter Fuel Payment. It will also highlight the food support available in the borough, and the importance of keeping the home safe and secure during the darker months.

The final aspect of the campaign encourages all residents to support one another. This includes carers across the borough as well as looking out for elderly and vulnerable neighbours and checking in on friends and family. Winter can lead to increases of social isolation and loneliness, so it’s important that we all pull together to ensure that everyone in Stockport is looked after.

Councillor Elise Wilson, Leader of Stockport Council, said: “With the weather turning colder and the nights drawing in, it’s important that everyone in Stockport knows what resources are on hand to help and support them this winter. From help and support with money worries at what can be a challenging time of year, to practical tips to help keep you healthy this winter, your services in Stockport are here for you.

“Residents are encouraged to sign up to council updates to stay in the know about any disruption to services or road closures due to bad weather.”

Andrea Green, Accountable Officer at Stockport Clinical Commissioning Group, added: “Our healthcare professionals, in particular our GPs and primary care colleagues, have been doing an amazing job in some really difficult circumstances throughout this pandemic. Winter is always a challenging time and this is especially the case this year. As well as keeping services going, it is important to remember that we are still working through the largest vaccination programme we have ever seen with our practices and partners working flat out to give as many boosters and the flu vaccinations as possible to help protect people from serious illness this winter.

“This year if we can all just help ourselves to keep as well as possible, help our loved ones and care givers to keep well, then we will each be helping the NHS professionals to be there when people need it.”

Karen James, Chief Executive of Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, commented: “There are lots of things people in Stockport can do to look after themselves this winter from a health perspective. From exercising and eating well to ward off those winter illnesses, to ensuring those eligible take up the offer of the COVID-19 booster jab and flu vaccine, its important that we all work together to keep everybody safe and well as the weather gets colder.”

Residents are encouraged to keep an eye on social media channels for details of the campaign and signposting to the support available.

Stockport locals can also sign up to the Stockport Review Extra for weekly email updates on how to stay safe and well this winter.