With Christmas fast approaching, the heart-warming prospect of celebrating the big day with loved ones is getting ever closer.

Many people were denied a traditional family Christmas last year, and to ensure this isn’t repeated in 2021, residents are being urged to support a new campaign aimed at keeping everyone safe over the festive period.

By backing the ‘help sleigh Covid’ initiative, residents can help protect themselves and loved ones, as well as preventing essential services such as the NHS from becoming overwhelmed.

To help stop the virus spread over Christmas residents are being asked to Sleigh Covid by carrying out three simple things: get the Covid vaccine or booster jab when offered, take a rapid test before going out to any event or busy indoor venue and protect others by self-isolating if you get a positive PCR test.

The Government has also launched it’s ‘Plan B’ to help tackle the new Omicron variant of Covid. Our three simple steps include these new measures, such as wearing face coverings in places such as cinemas and theatres as well as in shops and on public transport, working from home wherever possible and NHS Covid passes (or a negative LFT) needed for entry into nightclubs or large venues.

Cambridgeshire County Council’s Director for Public Health, Jyoti Atri said: “In the new year we need our hospitals and doctors’ surgeries to have capacity to treat everyone, we want our schools to be open for all our children, and we need staff well and available to protect vulnerable adults and children, grit the roads and collect the rubbish. This means we all need to do our bit to make sure our celebrations don’t ruin the new year.” To book a Covid booster vaccine visit www.nhs.uk

Anyone with symptoms, or who gets a positive result on their rapid test, should get a PCR test immediately and isolate while they wait for the result. To get a PCR test, visit: https://www.gov.uk/get-coronavirus-test.

Information on local Covid vaccine walk-in centres can be found at: https://www.thevaccinators.co.uk