SLMS COVID-19/Coronavirus Update

Paul CourtByPaul Court

SLMS COVID-19/Coronavirus Update

Dear Members,

The UK Chief Medical Officers have raised the risk from coronavirus (COVID-19) to the public from low to moderate.

It matters to us that South London Makerspace is a safe space for everyone involved.

This note provides advice on coronavirus (COVID-19) and what steps you could take to help keep everyone safe.

For the latest information on coronavirus and how it affects you and your space or event, please check the website of your local public health organisation.

For London, https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/ 1

These organisations regularly update their websites and are your most up-to-date source of information. We strongly encourage you to defer to the advice on these websites.

If you are unsure about anything, please consult the Directors (@directors on discourse or directors@southlondonmakerspace.org on email) and we will try to assist

The main risk to people with the virus is from public gatherings and people in close proximity. Due to the nature of the building and the ventilation etc, the space remains a low risk if we observe some basic measures.

While in the space, please observe good basic hygiene, wash your hands regularly, don’t share dust masks, take care while preparing food and store it in sealed containers, wash up your plate/cutlery/mug/pan etc AS SOON AS YOU’VE USED THEM with hot water and washing liquid and keep the place clean and tidy.

For planned sessions (Like the Thursday Electronics Club or Music Night), use common sense.

If, having checked your local public health advice and/or consulted the Techs/Directors, you feel that it is right to cancel a session or other event, you should do so. (you do not need to contact the Directors before making that decision, Tech or organisers can and should do this themselves if they feel the need)

If you decide to go ahead with your session or event, then you should consider taking the following actions:

  1. Advise participants that they should not attend the session or event if they are feeling unwell
  2. Encourage all attendees to adopt good hygiene practices
  3. Check below and your local public health organisation’s website if participants have for example travelled to an affected area or been in close contact with someone who has been diagnosed with coronavirus.

The World Health Organisation’s website is a good starting point for finding information and advice about this. We strongly advise you not to try to provide public health advice yourself.

If a person feels unwell while in the space, please ask if they require medical help from 111 or (999 if you are worried about their condition), isolate them in one area and inform other members in the space.

We request that you don’t come to the space if you are in any way unwell, if you’ve recently travelled to the UK from somewhere with a higher risk of coronavirus or have been in contact with someone who has.

These places are (as of 5th March 2020):

  • Cambodia
  • China
  • Hong Kong
  • Iran
  • Italy – only northern Italy (anywhere north of Pisa, Florence and Rimini)
  • Japan
  • Laos
  • Macau
  • Malaysia
  • Myanmar (Burma)
  • Singapore
  • South Korea
  • Taiwan
  • Tenerife
  • Thailand
  • Vietnam

Please contact us if you have any questions, and remember to regularly check your local public health organisation’s website for coronavirus updates.

Directors

About the author

Paul Court

Paul Court administrator

Maker from Bromley