Decision details

This decision was made under delegation 10.1(c) of Section 5 of Part 3 of the Council’s Constitution.  That delegation gives the following authority to the Chief Executive:

“Exercise the Council's powers to prepare for and deal with any disaster or emergency affecting life or property in Ipswich.”

The following actions were implemented on 24 March 2020 and formally publicised on the Council’s website as follows:

Ipswich Borough Council’s current position is as follows:

Clearly the statement by the Prime Minister last night has significantly changed life in the UK. The Borough Council has already introduced extensive changes to what it does and how it operates in response to the challenges of Coronavirus. However following the announcement last night the following additional measures have been taken:

1.     Ipswich Market: Only four food stalls will be permitted to operate at Ipswich Market from today and until further notice. The Council has spread them across Princes Street to protect traders and shoppers. No other (non-food) traders are permitted to operate. Two-metre markings have been made on the ground to assist shoppers, who are advised that the market could cease to operate if social distancing instructions are not adhered to.

2.     Play Areas etc in Parks. The Council has closed all play areas, outdoor gyms, kiosks and courts in its parks and open spaces. This has been done where possible by locking gates but in some cases through signage.

3.     The Executive meeting scheduled to be held today (24^th March 2020) has been cancelled.

In addition, during the course of the rest of the day the Council will:

4.     Further limit repairs to its Council Housing stock to absolutely essential items only until further notice.

5.     Further limit numbers at Grafton House Headquarters although numbers have already been reduced to about 50 people per day (all practising social distancing). This is approximately 10% of the numbers who normally work out of the Council’s space in Grafton House each day.

The above 5 measures are in addition to those announced by the Council on 20^th March 2020.

The Borough Council intends to issue a full updated summary position every Friday while communicating more regularly about individual issues and services.

Reason for decision: The decision was taken having taken regard of national advice about doing everything appropriate to protect health and life of people in Ipswich.  In the opinion of the Chief Executive, the threat to life posed by Coronavirus (COVID-19) was clearly an emergency affecting life in Ipswich.

This decision is exempt from call-in in light of the threat to life posed by Coronavirus.