News – Page 13 – Eastcote Residents' Association

Smart devices: using them safely in your home (Central Specialist Crime)

Just like a smartphone, laptop or PC, smart devices can be hacked to leave your data and privacy at risk. Very rarely, devices have been controlled by somebody else managing the device, often to frighten the victim.

Setting up your device

Before you buy, check reviews of the product and the manufacturer. For information about how to set up a specific device, refer to the manufacturer’s documentation. This may be a printed manual or ‘getting started’ guide that came with the device, on the

Check the default settings

Some devices may be insecure when they are first switched on, so you’ll need to take some quick steps to protect yourself.

If the device comes with a password that looks easily guessable (for example admin or 00000), change it.

Managing your account

If the device or app offers 2-step verification (2SV), turn it on. 2SV provides a way of ‘double checking’ that you really are the person you are claiming to be, and makes it much harder for criminals to access your online accounts, even if they know your password.

Keeping your device updated

For each of your smart devices, you should:

switch on the option to install automatic updates (if available)
install any manual updates when prompted
make sure your device’s operating system is up to date

If something goes wrong

If you become aware of an incident that’s been reported and you think your device is affected:

check the National Cyber Security Centre and the Information Commissioner’s Office for advice
if you think someone has malicious control/access of a device in your home, you should perform a factory reset

If you need to reply regarding this message, tap on this email address: sntxh-hillingdoneast@met.police.uk

Regards,
Jitu Solanki
PCSO

ULEZ expansion information

Please see attached an overview and background information regarding the London-wide Ultra-Low Emission Zone:
ULEZ overview

Further information that may be helpful:

Information about the wheelchair accessible vehicles grace period can be found on the ULEZ discounts and exemptions web page: https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/driving/ultra-low-emission-zone/discounts-and-exemptions

Information about the Disabled Benefits grace period can be found on the ULEZ discounts and exemptions web page: https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/driving/ultra-low-emission-zone/discounts-and-exemptions

Step-by step guide to applying for scrappage scheme grants: https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/driving/ultra-low-emission-zone/scrappage-schemes/car-and-motorcycle

WhatsApp Account takeover scam

Please see latest Police advice:
Whatsapp_Account_Takeover_Scam

Eastcote Town Centre Litter pick

On Saturday March 18 a dedicated team of litter pickers braved the morning rain to keep our town centre clean and tidy.
As part of the Great British Spring Clean we collected around 20 bags of litter from the High Street, rain gardens ,service roads and car parks.

Thanks to the team and to the Friends of Eastcote House Gardens for use of their equipment.

Also as part of the Great British Spring Clean there will be a Hillingdon Council organised litter pick in Pinn Meadows on Saturday April 1st from 10.00 until 12.00.
All equipment provided.

Library strategy consultation

The draft strategy for Hillingdon library service focuses on 5 ambitions, based primarily on the council strategy, the universal offer from Libraries Connected and other local strategies, including Digital Connectivity and Climate.

The library service has also reflected on its strong track record in supporting residents of all ages to access culture and literature, reliable information and opportunities to learn and participate. We want to hear from a broad range of people, including residents, community groups and businesses to ensure nothing has been missed.

The library service has been operating on a temporary set of opening hours since emerging from the pandemic restrictions and, as part of the strategy, is also consulting on a new permanent set of opening hours.

All Hillingdon libraries are grouped into 4 tiers based on their size, location and usage, so that we can direct resources according to how branches are accessed by those who live, work or study in the borough.

This questionnaire will also seek your views on the hours proposals.

We will continue to meet our statutory duty to deliver a comprehensive and efficient library service and will look at ways of ensuring library service delivery continues to be sustainable and a large network of libraries across the borough is retained.

Draft library service strategy (PDF) [2MB]

The closing date to have your say is Sunday 16 April.

Have your say in library strategy consultation

If you know of anyone who would like to complete the survey and does not have access to the internet, please call the Customer Engagement team on 01895 277038 and they will arrange for a paper copy to be sent out.

UK Harvest

UK Harvest are a charity on a mission to Nourish Our Nation; protecting the environment by rescuing good quality food destined for landfill and educating on nutrition, cookery skills, reducing food waste in the home and more recently energy efficient cooking skills using a microwave, slow cooker and air fryer.

We are offering free money-saving, waste preventing, online cookery sessions that could benefit you. These are fun-filled live cook-alongs on Zoom and if it isn’t possible for someone to join the online sessions, if they register then we will send them the recording of the session. We also have a range of free resources available to on our website and on our UKHarvest Youtube channel, as well as recipes such as:

Chilli Chicken Casserole Cook-along 20-3-23

Tesco Nourished (6)

Tesco Nourished (8)

This project has been funded by Tesco Community Grants and is being made available throughout the country.

Our team of professional chefs, qualified nutritionists, experienced teachers, and food waste experts have developed these sessions to be both engaging and educational.

Full details of the sessions and more information can be found now on our event page here: www.ukharvest.org.uk/nourished

The sessions coming up that could be of interest.

SESSION 2 – Cook-A-Thon Weds 29^th March 10am-8pm (Live on our Youtube Channel)

There will be 2 x cook-a-long sessions and special guest talks throughout the day.

Food & Fuel Live Cook-athon (School’s Session) Tickets, Wed, Mar 29, 2023 at 10:00 AM | Eventbrite

Food & Fuel Live Cook-athon (Family’s Session) Tickets, Wed, Mar 29, 2023 at 6:00 PM | Eventbrite

Topics throughout the day will include:

Food & mood – how what we eat can help to shape our day/wellbeing

Physical fitness & eating clean

Energy efficient cooking. – air fryers

Feed 4 vegan food for the family for a fiver

Shopping effectively & efficiently

Community food hubs

Cooking what we have Ready steady cook style challenge (with visiting chef)

Finishing with a loving your leftovers session – cooking with those bits leftover, being creative and preventing waste.

SESSION 3 Cook-A-Long

Cook with us Tickets, Mon 24 Apr 2023 at 14:00 | Eventbrite

kind regards,

Donna Martin
Community Engagement Manager/Fundraising
UKHarvest

Centre of excellence for inpatient orthopaedic surgery in north-west London gets the go-ahead

The proposal to bring together most routine inpatient orthopaedic surgery in north-west London in a new centre of excellence at Central Middlesex Hospital was approved today (Tuesday 21 March) by NHS North West London, the sector’s integrated care board.

The proposal incorporates feedback from a 13-week public consultation that closed earlier this year involving almost 2,000 people.

The North-West London Acute Provider Collaborative, made up of the sector’s four acute NHS trusts, developed the proposal to improve quality and reduce long waiting times, primarily for hip and knee replacements.

As well as feedback from the public consultation, the proposal reflects feedback and guidance from the London Clinical Senate, the North-West London Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee and the Mayor of London (who commissioned the Nuffield Trust to assess the proposal against his six tests for major NHS service change). The proposal is set out in a ‘decision making business case’ that has been published on the Collaborative website, www.nwl-acute-provider-collaborative.nhs.uk/publications.

Please go to our Trust news channel for the full report.

Communications and Engagement
The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Childhood Immunisation Catch Up Campaign

We all want to keep children safe and protected from serious illness. This is why we are asking you to support a focus on imploring parents in the community to make sure their child is up to date on their routine vaccinations.

Vaccination rates have been falling in London, which was further exacerbated during the pandemic. We need to maintain a high level of vaccine uptake across the population to reduce the risk of outbreaks and the potentially serious impacts on children’s health.

MMR is a key vaccination programme that has reduced the spread of measles, mumps and rubella (German measles) which can develop into life-threatening illnesses such as meningitis and pneumonia.

Any children in London who are not up to date with their routine vaccinations can get a catch-up dose via their GP to ensure they are fully protected.
Continue reading “Childhood Immunisation Catch Up Campaign”

Update on NHS proposal to improve orthopaedic surgery in north-west London

Almost 2,000 patients and local people have taken part in a 14-week public consultation on a proposal to develop a centre of excellence for inpatient orthopaedic surgery at Central Middlesex Hospital, Park Royal.

The North-West London Acute provider Collaborative, made up of the four acute NHS trusts in north-west London have proposed bringing together most of their routine, inpatient orthopaedic surgery – primarily hip and knee replacements – into a dedicated site completely separated from emergency care services.

The trusts, in partnership with the integrated care board for North-West London, have been inviting patients and the public to share their views on this proposal during the consultation period, which closed on 20 January 2023. An evaluation of the responses written by the independent research agency Verve Communications has been published and will now be used to inform next steps.

A total of 1,959 people participated in the consultation. Overall, participants thought that the proposal for an elective orthopaedic centre for most routine surgery was a good idea and hoped that it would help to reduce waiting times for patients, while there were some people who would prefer to have all their treatment at their local hospitals for convenience.

The consultation report is available online or, on request from the trusts, in a range of accessible formats, provides a detailed breakdown of the consultation activities and feedback, including by borough.

Communications and Engagement
The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust