Delighted to be in the lowest Covid risk zone
VILLAGERS HAIL STATISTICS’ GOOD NEWS FOR AREA
RESIDENTS in the area with the fewest active Covid-19 cases in the East Midlands have praised the way their “close-knit” community has tackled the pandemic.
Cropwell Bishop, Kinoulton and Upper Broughton in Rushcliffe have recorded just five new cases of the virus in the most recent weekly data.
This is the lowest number of new cases recorded in any area in the entire region, with the area – defined as a small Middle Super Output Area (MSOA) – having a rolling rate of just 83 cases per 100,000 people since the pandemic began.
Middle Super Output Areas are small geographical zones with average populations of around 8,000, used for small population and census data.
For contrast, neighbouring Cotgrave recorded 22 cases in the same period, while there were 19 cases each in the Bingham and Radcliffe on Trent & Shelford MSOAS.
People in Cropwell Bishop praised news that their area has had so few new cases.
Stuart Thompson, 61, said the village was a “really nice place to live”.
He added: “A lot of people have lived here for a long time, I have been here for 20-odd years.
“I don’t know anyone locally who has been diagnosed with coronavirus and I suppose out here we are away from Covid.
“Here we have a lot of space – people stand to the side on the pavement to let people cross and there has been a lot of talking to each other from the other side of the road.”
Lisa Newbold, 51, runs the Cropwell Bishop Creamery in Nottingham Road.
She said: “We have got the Cropwell Volunteers who have been fantastic getting prescriptions and delivering food for people.
“So that has been good from the human point of view.
“But it’s also nice to know you live somewhere where you can walk along and breathe, and not feel panicked like in a big town or city.
“It is a relief to know we’ve got such low case numbers, and it’s down I think to having space to be able to stand back on the pavement, let people past and make space for each other.” Sarah Williams, 45, who also lives in the village, said: “It’s a rural area, and a lot of people don’t have to go to Nottingham to work. “Here it’s quite easy to avoid people, it’s not crowded and people and people are following the rules properly.
“So it makes it hard for the virus to get here and to spread.” Julie Matthews, 63, who was walking her dog through the village, also described the news as “amazing”.
She added: “I’m amazed actually that we’ve had such few cases. I didn’t realise it was this low. “We’re quite a close community and there’s quite a lot of respect for each other. “We’re adhering to the rules and it’s quite difficult for it to spread because we’re so set away from the main towns and villages.” Weekly data published by Public Health England has shown that the number of new cases recorded in the wider Rushcliffe borough has also continued to fall week on week.
It’s down I think to having space to be able to stand back on the pavement, let people past Lisa Newbold