Venue managers fear more damage to business as new Covid safety restrictions come into place to combat the rapid spread of the Omicron variant. Stevie Day, managing director of Fewer Than One nightclub told Sheffield Live! the venue is already in debt and could face closure without further support. Azz Mohammed reports.
Bus services in South Yorkshire face further disruption after drivers vote to continue a strike over pay. The Unite union said more than 560 Stagecoach employees in Sheffield, Barnsley and Rotherham would be on strike until the end of the week. Drivers walked out earlier this month and voted to extend the action after rejecting the latest pay offer. Stagecoach said it wants to work with Unite to find a solution and details of services running would be on its website. Baillor Jalloh reports for Sheffield Live!
With new Covid-19 restrictions set to come into force this week in a bid to reduce the spread of the Omicron variant, Sheffield Live! asked local residents for their views. From Wednesday, under the new rules, anyone visiting pubs, nightclubs, or indoor unseated venues with more than 500 people will have to show they are vaccinated against the coronavirus or provide a negative lateral flow test to be allowed in. Baillor Jalloh reports.
Following publication of the Ofsted annual report, the schools inspectorate has said nearly all children and learners have been affected by the Covid pandemic, with long-term consequences unknown. In Yorkshire the report concluded 83 per cent of primary schools were rated as good or outstanding. Sheffield Live! reporter Baillor Jalloh spoke to Emma Ing, director of Ofsted in the North East, Yorkshire and The Humber.
Hundreds of teaching staff from Sheffield’s two universities joined strike action this month, with more disruption anticipated in a dispute over pension cuts, pay and working conditions. The University and College Union (UCU) are in dispute with the Universities UK and the Universities and Colleges Employers’ Association with 58 UK universities involved in this month’s industrial action. Sheffield Live! reporter Baillor Jalloh spoke to Ben Abell, a lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University.
Sheffield health boss, Greg Fell, told Sheffield Live! the Omicron variant is likely to spread rapidly over the next few weeks. With cases of the new variant rising, the government has introduced new restrictions including face masks in most public indoor venues other than hospitality and people being asked to work from home where possible. The new measures could be in place for at least six weeks. Azz Mohammed reports for Sheffield Live!
Under the new Covid-19 rules anyone visiting indoor unseated nightclub venues with over five hundred people will have to show they are either vaccinated or provide a lateral flow test. The news has led to cancellations and uncertainty for venue managers. Sheffield Live! reporter Azz Mohammed spoke to Joe Taylor, managing director of Dryad Works.
Hundreds of supporters joined a campaign rally this week to save the University of Sheffield’s world-renowned archaeology department. The department is scheduled to be closed over the next few years with university bosses blaming a “difficult external environment” and a “significant reduction” in the number of undergraduate students. Sheffield Live! reporter Baillor Jalloh spoke to Umberto Albarella, a professor of archaeology at the University of Sheffield.
Grounded Research, the research team at Rotherham, Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust, has been selected to join an international Covid-19 booster trial. The team is seeking volunteers to take part in Covid-19 vaccine booster research and are calling on members of the public in Sheffield to help them understand the impact of the booster jab on new variants. Sheffield Live! reporter Baillor Jalloh spoke to Dr Adrian Phillipson who is leading the trial for Grounded Research.
A vigil outside Sheffield Town Hall has been held to remember the group of at least 27 people who drowned last Wednesday while trying to cross the English channel in a small dinghy. The deaths are the worst single accident involving attempted crossings by migrants seeking to reach the UK from France. Sheffield Live! reporter Ballor Jalloh spoke to Maxine Bowler and Ebru Garnett from Sheffield’s Stand Up to Racism campaign group.