Lambeth closes its pitches and play areas in parks

By Grainne Cuffe BBC local democracy reporter

 

Town hall chiefs have closed play areas and sport facilities in parks because people are “ignoring Government advice” to stay home.  

Thousands of people in the UK disregarded advice to stay home over the weekend, flocking to parks and public spaces.  

The National Trust has already closed its parks and gardens to the public in a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus.   

Lambeth council has decided to shut some of its facilities. A spokesman said: “We’re concerned about people ignoring Government advice to stay at home, and if you do go out, to keep a safe distance from each other.  

“As a result, play areas and sports facilities in our parks are now closed to help stop the spread of the virus. Toilets in parks remain closed.” 

Parks will remain open “for now”.  

The council previously closed all children’s centres, leisure centres, and libraries due to the outbreak.  

It was also announced it would no longer be offering a call-out service to deal with noise complaints.  

“Due to the COVID-19 emergency, Public Protection has reduced the noise nuisance service to fall in line with Public Health England guidelines.  

“This means the team are unable to offer a call-out service or attend when a noise nuisance is occurring,” according to the council.  

Residents are being warned not to come into the Lambeth Civic Centre unless it is “absolutely necessary”.  

Copies of birth, marriage and death certificates will be “significantly” delayed.   

“We are working hard to minimise disruption to our services as a result of coronavirus, however in some cases services may be disrupted due to staff absence or official advice from the government.  

“We have initiated our pandemic coordination group to monitor the situation and coordinate the response across the council and we are working closely with our NHS partners.  

“Where possible, we are encouraging staff to work from home  

“We are increasing the cleaning frequency across all of our buildings and are providing supplies like hand sanitiser to help staff clean their hands regularly,” according to the council.