Experiencing Event Management During the Coronavirus Pandemic: A Public Sector Perspective

Events have played a significant role in the way in which the Coronavirus pandemic has been experienced and known around the world. Little is known though about how the pandemic has impacted on supporting, managing and governing events in municipal (i.e., local) authorities as key stakeholders, nor how events have featured in the opening-up of localities. This paper reports on empirical research with senior events officers for local authorities in the UK on these key knowledge gaps. Specifically, it examines events officers' unfolding experiences of the pandemic. The paper points to unpreparedness for a crisis of this scale and magnitude, and the roles of innovation, adaptation and co-production in the emergent response. It highlights the transformative nature of the pandemic through reconsiderations of the purpose of public sector involvement in events and, from a policy perspective, how relatively smaller-scale, more agile and lower-risk arts events and performances can figure in local recovery. Finally, while the effects on, and response of, the body corporate (the local authority) to crises is an obvious focus, it is important to recognise those of the individuals who manage the response and drive change.

Protective effect of a first SARS-CoV-2 infection from reinfection: a matched retrospective cohort study using PCR testing data in England

The duration of immunity after first SARS-CoV-2 infection and the extent to which prior immunity prevents reinfection is uncertain and remains an important question within the context of new variants. Using a retrospective population-based matched observational study approach, we identified cases with a first PCR positive test between 01 March 2020 and 30 September 2020 and cases were matched by age, sex, upper tier local authority of residence and testing route to individuals testing negative in the same week (controls) by PCR. After a 90-day pre-follow up period for cases and controls, any subsequent positive tests up to 31 December 2020 and deaths within 28 days of testing positive were identified, this encompassed an essentially vaccine-free period. There were 517,870 individuals in the matched cohort with 2,815 reinfection cases and 12,098 first infections. The protective effect of a prior SARS-CoV-2 PCR-positive episode was 78% (OR 0.22, 0.21-0.23). Protection rose to 82% (OR 0.18, 0.17-0.19) after a sensitivity analysis excluded 934 individuals with a first test between March and May and a subsequent positive test between June and September 2020. Amongst individuals testing positive by PCR during follow-up, reinfection cases had 77% lower odds of symptoms at the second episode (adjusted OR 0.23, 0.20-0.26) and 45% lower odds of dying in the 28 days after reinfection (adjusted OR 0.55, 0.42-0.71). Prior SARS-CoV-2 infection offered protection against reinfection in this population. There was some evidence that reinfections increased with the Alpha variant compared to the wild-type SARS-CoV-2 variant highlighting the importance of continued monitoring as new variants emerge.

Lancashire County Council St Michaels and Carnforth Footbridges - United Kingdom

<p>Lancashire County Council (LCC) in UK are a forward thinking and innovative local authority with a significant number of bridges in their asset stock. They commissioned Jacobs to carry out a detailed options study for eight footbridges following concerns that were raised during principal inspections. The options report considered refurbishment and replacement options and the possibility of using new construction materials with the aim of maximizing durability and minimizing maintenance. The recommendations for all footbridges was replace them with Fibre Reinforced Polymer. LCC divided the eight bridges into packages of two according to their budget constraints and issued tender documents to contactors for the first two packages. The first package contractor has successfully delivered two replacement FRP Footbridges of 28m span over railway in Ormskirk. These are the longest simply supported FRP footbridges in the UK. The second tender package to be issued to tender was for St Michaels and Carnforth Footbridges at 37m and 31m spans. The Council wanted FRP Bow String Trusses for these bridges that crossed a River and a Canal respectively. Nothing like this type and scale of footbridges had ever been realized in the UK. This tender was won with an alternative proposal to replace these footbridges with an aluminium solution explaining to the client in doing so the risks and costs involved in designing and fabricating these structures in FRP would be significantly greater. These are the longest aluminum footbridges in the UK of this type.</p>

More Money, More Problems? Addressing the Funding Conditions Required for Rights-Based Child Welfare Services in England

Policymakers and academics continue to debate the criteria used in formulas to allocate funding to children’s services, but few studies have considered how well the results of these formulas align with rights-based entitlements and commitments after implementation. This research measured correspondence between local authority spending per child and levels of income deprivation, special educational needs, and child development from 2011–2019 to assess the extent to which funding matches local authorities’ statutory responsibilities to provide support to children ‘in need’ under the Children Act 1989. There was weak and worsening correspondence between funding and needs, especially for preventative services.

AFTERMATH OF BREXIT FOR WALES

After withdrawal of the UK from the EU its Celtic regions (Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales) faced a deterioration in the conditions for their socio-economic development and began to demand from B. Johnson to revise the principles of interaction between central government and local authorities in favor of expanding devolution. In Wales, separatist tendencies have not reached the same magnitude as in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Nevertheless, an acute confrontation arose at the intergovernmental level – the M. Drakeford’s Labour government protests against B. Johnson’s regional policy. The most acute contradictions arose against the background of the application of the UK Internal Market Act 2020 and the inability of the British government to compensate the region for the loss of subsidies from the EU structural funds after Brexit. To put pressure on the central government, Labour Party in Wales organized a special commission in October 2021 to consider separating the region from the United Kingdom and transferring additional powers to the local authority. This fact indicates the growth of a deep systemic crisis in the country, which makes the regions doubt the ability of the central government to effectively use its instruments to cope with the consequences of Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic.

SYSTEMATIC INVENTORY FOR HERITAGE SHOPHOUSE FACADES IN IPOH, PERAK, MALAYSIA

Nowadays, many heritage shophouses remain intact in major urban areas in Malaysia, including Ipoh, Perak. These architectural assets are significant as they portray the glory and achievements of Ipoh over the centuries. However, some shophouses face inappropriate façade changes due to improper conservation activities performed on the heritage properties. These situations have resulted in the phenomenon of inconsistency elements of building facades. Therefore, this paper focuses on two aspects regarding heritage shophouse facades; first, developing the taxonomy of architectural styles according to the tangible elements, and second, classifying and grading the architectural styles. Then, an inventory form named eFakad was developed as a tool to evaluate 65 shophouses at Jalan Sultan Iskandar, Ipoh. The result shows that 49% of facades are in excellent condition, but the rest of the facades need to be conserved and maintained, particularly roof finishes, windows and doors. By applying eFakad inventory form, the documentation and conservation management of the heritage shophouses can be done systematically. Consequently, the stakeholders will be aware of the main problems faced by the heritage shophouses through the inventory record and appropriate actions can be taken in preserving the integrity of the facades. Additionally, the local authority may use the information to improve the existing conservation guidelines.