Council sets out pandemic recovery plans
Test Valley Borough Council (TVBC) has set out its recovery plan in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
The plan was rubber stamped at a cabinet meeting on July 15, and identifies the council’s key priorities, including town centres, the economy, local communities and staff wellbeing, with public health and safety underpinning its approach.
The authority has set up individual workstreams for each priority and has said that it will work closely with local communities and partners to progress its recovery proposals. The council is also keen to identify opportunities to do things differently, including new ways of working, and recognises that recovery will take a number of years.
It is still assessing the specific work and projects required but the recovery plan highlights TVBC’s overarching approach to supporting its residents, employees, businesses and partners as the country starts to adapt to the new normal.
Leader of Test Valley Borough Council, councillor Phil North, said: “First and foremost, I’d like to thank all those who are still very much in the thick of responding to the pandemic. The community support and spirit seen up and down the borough is truly amazing.
‘It feels odd to be talking about recovery when Covid-19 is still very much present. In any major incident, recovery is absolutely key. But Covid-19 presents a unique challenge, as it is likely that we will move between response and recovery depending on local flare-ups. And that makes recovery planning incredibly challenging.
“That said, we are tremendously lucky here in Test Valley to have such amazing local community groups and organisations that have proved invaluable during the response and they will be just as pivotal to our recovery.”
As a member of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Local Resilience Forum, the council will also play a part in the wider county recovery programme.