How Ludham changed in response to the Coronavirus Pandemic of 2020/21

At the start of 2020, a new Coronavirus (Covid 19) began to spread across the world. At first, the UK tried to control the virus with quarantine and contact tracing measures, but the outbreak started to spread rapidly and was threatening to overwhelm the NHS. So, on the evening of Monday the 23rd of March 2020, the Government placed the country into "Lockdown". Initially, this was to be for 3 weeks, but, in fact, it continued until the 13th of May before the restrictions began to be gradually lifted.

The Prime Minister Announces the Lockdown

The rules of the lockdown were strict:

Only go outside for food, health reasons or work (but only if you cannot work from home)

If you go out, stay two metres (6ft) away from other people at all times

Wash your hands as soon as you get home

Do not meet others, even friends or family.

Remember anyone can spread the virus even if they don’t have symptoms.

In addition to this, only essential shops remained open, pubs and restaurants closed, boating on the Broads was banned and people could not visit second homes. People could go out to exercise once a day but could not drive to places like the beach. People with health issues were not allowed out at all.

The effect on Ludham was profound. Road traffic almost ceased, tourists vanished and the rivers were devoid of boats. The village stores and the butchers remained open for essential supplies and some other shops were open for a while but eventually they also closed. The pubs started selling take away food but were otherwise closed. Social groups could no longer meet (including the Ludham Archive Group), the school closed and the surgery had to adopt new ways of working. A strange silence fell over the village.

However, Ludham is a special place with a great community spirit. Local businesses started to offer delivery services, the village car scheme quickly converted to a delivery service for food and medicine and everyone rallied to help. Some people started sewing scrubs for the NHS and others joined the NHS volunteers. On Thursdays at 8.00pm the whole village turned out (with social distancing) to clap for our frontline heroes and the NHS. Meetings moved from face to face to Skype and Zoom and people started working from home.

The car scheme starts deliveries

Here is an update on the car scheme activities as lockdown started to ease in May:

CHURCHES TOGETHER AND THE PARISH COUNCIL
LOOKING AFTER LUDHAM
This week's efforts have resulted in a total of 159 prescription deliveries and 138 food deliveries since we started some nine weeks ago. A grand total of 297 missions - which have been a much appreciated lifeline for 85 isolated villagers.
A Whitsuntide gift of a flowering pot plant with a card is being sent to each resident and member of staff of the Ludham Care Home, with our good wishes and to let them know that we are thinking of them.
A reminder that facemarks as used in our Surgery are available for volunteers use. E-mail Ken and they will be placed in a named envelope pinned to his front door for collection.
Once again, Parish Council Chairman Adrian and I thank all our volunteers for their continuing and untiring efforts in Looking after Ludham.
Yours very sincerely
Ken Grapes

Local volunteers sew scrubs for the NHS


The NHS volunteers offer help

The school closed and traffic vanished

The NHS flag flies on the church tower


Rainbows appeared all over the village


Toad Hole museum was closed


These moorings at How Hill are normally packed with boats


No boats on Womack Staithe either

A message of thanks appeared at the Surgery Left - An Easter Cross at the closed Methodist Church made by Suzanne and Martin Gunton

The Hunter Fleet could not go out


Cancelled events on the village notice board


Lots of notices at the Surgery explain the new ways of working

The toilets were closed New enterprises still opened see right
We all became used to seeing closed notices Ludham School opened a shopping box service This offered free food to anyone in need.
Churches began to allow private prayer	Ludham Butchers were very organised.

Exercise was allowed but even the village footpaths were quiet

As part of the Portraits for NHS Heroes project, Ludham Artist, Kate Gabriel, painted these portraits of  NHS staff.

Alison, Ludham Nurse

Angie, Ludham GP

In May, outdoor work was still allowed in Lockdown Ludham

New cladding
	Openreach at the Telephone Exchange

Clap for Heroes events were held on Thursdays.

School Road holds a Clap for Heroes event on Thursday 8.00pm
(Thanks to himandherweddingphotography.co.uk for these pictures)


More clapping on School Rd


The cakes look good.

On the 10th of May, the Government announced some changes to the lockdown rules. People were allowed to go out for exercise more than once a day and could visit places like public parks. This allowed places like the Secret Garden to open with social distancing. The Government changed its headline graphic to “Stay alert, control the virus, save lives”. People who could not work from home were encouraged to go back to work. Meeting one person outside your household was allowed.

The Secret Garden in May 2020



During Lockdown, these Lockdown Hearts were often seen in Ludham Skies

From the 1st of June Lockdown restrictions were lifted slightly. People could now meet outdoors in groups of 6 from different households as long as 2m social distancing rules were applied. People could meet in private gardens as well as public places. A limited return of children to school began.

Local people encouraged each other and kept a sense of humour

On the 13th of June, "Support Bubbles" were introduced. This allowed one person households to form a bubble with another household with overnight stays allowed.

In June the River Ant at How Hill is still quiet with just the occasional private boat

From the 15th of June, "non-essential" shops were allowed to open along with some outdoor attractions like zoos. This change meant that more Ludham shops and businesses began to open again. The Village Shop and the Butchers had remained open throughout, but most other things had been closed. Pub take away services continued in Ludham. Much more traffic was now back on Ludham's roads but the rivers still only allowed private boats with no overnight staying and so were still very quiet.

From 4th July, Pubs and Restaurants were allowed to open using the new one metre plus social distancing rule. Hire boats returned to the rivers and overnight stays on boats were allowed. People could return to second homes. The new social distancing rules were hard to implement for some places and Alfresco Tea Rooms took the decision to remain closed for the rest of the year. People could now meet indoors with one other household with overnight stays allowed. This allowed families to get together again. Places of worship could reopen for services as opposed to private prayer which had been permitted for longer.

Ludham Methodist Church prepares for Socially Distanced Services


As shops reopened, it was hard to be clear how it would all work at the new Circus Gift Shop at Ludham Bridge.

Hire boats returned to The Broads and the moorings at How Hill were busy again.

On the 24th of July, face coverings became compulsory in shops and further non-essential businesses began to open.

With Pubs and restaurants open, the month of August saw many local businesses benefit from the government's "Eat Out to Help Out" scheme which allowed you to eat out for half price.

Further easing had been planned to come into force on 1 August, but this was put back to the 15th of August: These changes were:

    Indoor theatre, music and performance venues could reopen with socially distanced audiences.
    Wedding receptions for up to 30 guests were allowed.
    A few sporting events were allowed to trial a limited number of spectators beginning with the World Snooker Championship.
    Casinos, bowling alleys, skating rinks and soft play centres could reopen.
    Close contact beauty services began.

In August, all Ludham shops and pubs were open and the roads were busy with traffic again. An air of normality returned to the village although social distancing was still necessary and social groups like the Ludham Archive and the Womack Herons were unable to meet due to the continuing lockdown rules. The Church Rooms and the Sloper Room remained closed to bookings. The annual service at St Benet's took place but without the usual congregation. Just the Bishop and a few others attended.

Ludham hairdressers could now open with suitable personal protection equipment.
Here we see Jane at Chardonny with customer Jennifer.

The Ludham children's playground which had been closed up to this point could now reopen.


One of the more unusual lockdown activities at Ludham Manor

At the beginning of September, with Covid cases rising rapidly again especially among young people, further restrictions were reintroduced. This time "The Rule of 6" made any social gatherings of over 6 people, indoors or out, illegal. Schools returned and the government encouraged people to return to Covid secure places of work.

The latest report from Looking after Ludham at the start of September read as follows:

PARISH COUNCIL AND CHURCHES TOGETHER
LOOKING AFTER LUDHAM - SITREP 18

Who would have believed last March that we would still be at it!
In the past two weeks another 7 food consignments and 10 prescriptions have been delivered. We have now completed a grand total of 538 'missions' since we started.
There is still a need for more drivers for the village car scheme.
As things have been quieter of late, these sitreps will now be published on a monthly basis.
With continuing thanks from our Parish Council and Churches Together in Ludham.
Yours
Ken Grapes

However, despite the Rule of 6, cases continued to rise rapidly in September and with a second wave of the pandemic now in sight, the Government introduced further lockdown restrictions from the 24th of September. These were:

Pubs and Restaurants to close at 10.00pm, and are restricted to table service only.
People should work from home wherever possible.
Face masks were extended to bar staff, non-seated customers, shop workers and waiters.
Limits of wedding guests were reduced from 30 to 15 but funerals remained at 30.
Plans to allow fans back to sporting events were paused.
The rule of 6 was extended to indoor team sports.
Fines were increased to £200 for a first offence and enforcement was stepped up
The Prime Minister warned that this may last for 6 months and if this did not work, tougher measures would follow.

These new measures had little impact on Ludham but across the country, cases of the virus were still rising and so the tougher measures that the Government had hinted at were implemented. This took the form of a tiered system of restrictions and these came into effect on the 12th of October. The 3 tiers were as follows:

Although growing, the numbers of cases of the virus in Norfolk were low and Ludham was placed in Tier 1. Apart from the change to hospitality closing hours, this made little difference to the restrictions already applying to life in Ludham. Many parts of the North found themselves in the higher Tiers with a lot more restrictions.

Government advertising emphasized the new slogan of Hands, Face and Space:

As October progressed, case numbers across the country continued to rise, and even the Ludham area now had cases although Ludham remained in Tier 1. At the end of the month, with cases rising rapidly and threatening to overwhelm the NHS, the Government announced a new National Lockdown to begin on Thursday the 5th of November.

This new lockdown was to last until the 2nd of December and was different from the first lockdown because schools and universities were to stay open. The new restrictions were as follows:

Stay at home unless you have a specific reason to leave, such as work which cannot be done from home and education,
exercise, medical reasons, food and other essential shopping and providing care for vulnerable people or for volunteering.
Meeting indoors or in private gardens not allowed
You can meet one other person from another household outside in a public place
Pubs, bars, restaurants and non-essential retail across the nation to close but takeaways and click-and-collect shopping can remain open
Leisure and entertainment venues, including gyms, will also close
Construction sites and manufacturing workplaces can remain open
People are still allowed to form support bubbles
Children can move between homes if their parents are separated
Clinically vulnerable people are asked to be "especially careful" but people are not  asked to resume shielding

As Lockdown 2 took effect in Ludham, it was clear that the effects on the village would be different from the first lockdown. Streets were quieter but there was more traffic and more people about than in the first. The shops remained open but the pubs were back to takeaway service only. The school was open. Those on boating holidays at the start of the lockdown could continue to the end but new holidays could not start.

There was less traffic but more than in the first lockdown


Church services were suspended. QR codes for the NHS Covid app appeared.


The Village Hall was open for permitted socially distanced bookings


The school restarted its food sharing box


Poppies outside the Methodist Church for Remembrance Sunday


The normal Remembrance Parade was not possible. Ken Grapes lays a wreath in a much reduced event.


The King's Arms was closed during Lockdown but you could still get a takeaway.

On 2nd of December, the second Lockdown ended and England moved to a new 3 Tier system of restrictions. These new Tiers were similar to the previous Tiers but were more restrictive.

Infection rates were beginning to fall by the end of the Lockdown but hospital admissions and deaths were still high. Because of this, almost all of England was placed into Tier 2 or Tier 3. Ludham was placed in Tier 2 (High). Infection rates in the East of England remained some of the lowest in the country but the decline in rates was very slow.

The day that the 2nd Lockdown ended also saw the news that the first vaccine against Covid-19 (from Pfizer and BioNTech) had been approved by the regulator for use in the UK. Preparations began for the roll out of a mass vaccination programme. The first doses of the new vaccine arrived at the end of the week.

The Prime Minister announced that there would be a relaxation of the Tier rules over the Christmas period from 23rd to 27th of December allowing families to meet up in a limited way. At the same time, the Government urged extreme caution. "Tis the Season to be Jolly Careful".

The week beginning the 14th of December saw the first Ludham people called to receive the Covid-19 vaccine. The vaccine roll out was phased into Groups as follows:

   1.  Residents in a care home for older adults and their carers
   2. All those 80 years of age and over and front line health and social care workers
   3. All those 75 years of age and over
   4. All those 70 years of age and over and clinically extremely vulnerable individuals
   5. All those 65 years of age and over
   6. All individuals aged 16 years to 64 years with underlying health conditions which put them at higher risk of serious disease and mortality
   7. All those 60 years of age and over
   8. All those 55 years of age and over
   9. All those 50 years of age and over

It was estimated that taken together, these groups represent around 99% of preventable mortality from COVID-19.

In December, it was Ludham people in Groups 1 and 2 who were given appointments to be vaccinated. Initially they had to travel to the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital due to the vaccine having to be stored at very low temperatures.

As December progressed, the drop in cases of the virus caused by the lockdown started to reverse and nationally cases began to rise again. Even in North Norfolk cases were on the rise. It now became clear that a new strain of the virus was circulating in the South East and London and this new strain was much easier to catch and transmit. This accounted for the rise in cases.

On the 19th of December, the Government took the decision to introduce a new Tier 4 set of restrictions. London and the South East were placed in Tier 4 while Ludham remained in Tier 2. In addition, the planned relaxation of restrictions for Christmas from 23rd to 27th of December was cancelled and limited mixing was only allowed on Christmas Day. Even this was cancelled in Tier 4 areas. For many, even in Ludham, this meant cancelling Christmas plans (if they had not already done so).

With Ludham staying in Tier 2 during the run up to Christmas, some events could still go ahead:

Santa was still able to visit the Village Hall

Ponies from Beeches Farm came to help Santa and to collect money for the School

          Carol singing was still allowed outdoors.                                        There was even a free tree if you could carry it.

In the run up to Christmas, cases of Covid, especially those of the new variant, continued to grow rapidly. On Monday 21st December, more than 40 countries closed their borders to travelers from the UK further disrupting Christmas plans. The Port of Dover was completely closed causing a large back up of lorries on the motorway. Government scientists warned that further lockdown restrictions would probably be needed in the coming days.

Despite this, the roll out of the vaccine continued rapidly with the total number of people receiving their first dose passing half a million. Many older and vulnerable people in Ludham were in this first wave of vaccinations. The village remained in Tier 2.

People in the village made a big effort with Christmas Decorations to raise spirits
This is just one example

However, in the run up to Christmas, case numbers of the new variant of Covid-19 were rising very rapidly in the South and East and hospital admissions were back at the level last seen in April. The Government decided to place all of the South and East into Tier 4 from Boxing Day. This included Ludham. Most people had already cancelled Christmas plans and the new Tier 4 restrictions were effectively a new lockdown.

In Tier 4 restrictions you could not leave or be outside of your home or garden except where you have a ‘reasonable excuse’. Reasonable excuses included going to work, taking children to school, exercise, medical reasons and food shopping. Meeting more than one person outside your household or support bubble was not allowed. A raft of extra measures and exceptions led to a complex situation, but basically, you had to stay at home and not meet people.

The restrictions were reviewed regularly, but it was thought that they were unlikely to be relaxed until sufficient people had been vaccinated. News of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine was eagerly awaited, but it was still not approved by the regulator. Then, on 30th December, the news came that the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine was finally approved and plans were made for the roll out in the new year.

Despite the restrictions of Tier 4, rates of Covid infections continued to rise rapidly, especially in the East and South East where the new variant was spreading. Ludham was caught up in this, with cases in the East of England rising out of control. Ludham people in Groups 1 and 2 continued to receive the vaccine but it was decided to delay giving them a second dose to allow more people to receive a first dose as it was found that the first dose gave up to 70% immunity and prevented serious illness in people who subsequently caught the virus. The purpose was to give as many people in vulnerable groups the vaccine so that the pressure on the NHS was reduced.

Some people continued to break the Tier 4 rules over Christmas, and on New Year's Eve, the police found 60 people setting up an illegal rave on Hall Common in Ludham. It was thought this was planned to move to St Benet's Abbey. Quick action was taken with fines, the sound equipment confiscated and people arrested for drugs offenses. Ludham's normal New Year celebrations and fireworks were cancelled and with the pubs closed it was a strangely quiet new year.

Police block the road in Ludham - Image EDP

St Catherine's was closed again although, this time, mainly due to the building work

Track and Trace was still operating and the butchers had to close as a result

Despite all the efforts, the vaccine rollout was not fast enough to stop cases rising rapidly and on 4th of January, the Prime Minister announced that the whole of England was going into a third lockdown with immediate effect. Once again the slogan was "Stay at Home, Protect the NHS, Save Lives". Schools had just reopened the day before and now they were all shut again with little prospect of reopening until half term in February. The roll out of the Oxford vaccine began on the same day with the promise of 2 million vaccinations per week. The UK vaccination programme was ahead of many countries with more people immunised in the UK than in the whole of Europe. The numbers of people in hospital now exceeded the peak totals seen in April.

On 11th January a new local vaccination center opened in Hoveton Village Hall with 6 local surgeries taking part including Ludham. On 18th January, a further large vaccination centre opened in Norwich at the Food Hall in the Castle Shopping Mall. All this further vaccination capacity helped the move towards the Government target of vaccinating everyone in Groups 1 to 4 by 15th February. In some parts of the country, this programme was ahead of schedule but the East was generally lagging behind. Supply issues were blamed and supplies were targeted at this area to help catch up. Ludham Butchers completed their quarantine period and reopened.

In the week beginning the 18th January, it was clear that the lockdown was having an effect and infection rates were beginning to fall. However, this would take some time to slow hospital admission rates which were at record levels and the NHS was struggling to cope with the numbers. Daily death rates were being reported at well over 1000. Vaccination numbers continued to rise rapidly with the 4 million mark being passed on the 19th. The target remained at 15 million people to be vaccinated by 15th February.

On the 27th of January, the Government announced that it would not be possible for schools to reopen after half term and set a target of 8th of March as the earliest date. A route map for ending the current lockdown was promised on the 22nd of February. Vaccinations were continuing at a high rate with over 7 million people now having received the first dose. The programme was on target to have vaccinated everyone in Groups 1 to 4 by mid-February. Hospital admission rates had fallen slightly but the daily death toll was still well over 1000. Rates of new infections across the UK continued to fall.

February 2021 began with Ludham firmly in lockdown. In addition, the weather turned very cold and Ludham was blanketed in snow for the first two weeks of the month. Low temperatures not seen for 25 years were recorded.

Lockdown Hearts began to appear in Ludham windows.

Ludham Primary School sent letters of thanks to key workers


The snow was not especially deep but it was very cold and icy

On the 14th of February, temperatures suddenly rose and Ludham quickly thawed out. In addition, the Government announced that the vaccination target had been met and everyone in Groups 1 to 4 had been offered a vaccination. Despite some people choosing not to be vaccinated, the target of of 15 million doses was achieved a day early, and Ludham people between the ages of 65 and 70 were already heading to the Village Hall in Hoveton for their vaccinations. Cases of Covid nationally were dropping rapidly with the East of England moving below 20 cases per 100,000. However, the number of people in hospital with Covid was still very high and above the peak of the first wave in April. The Government urged extreme caution and stuck to its promise of offering a roadmap out of lockdown on or after the 22nd of February. Lockdown restrictions continued and new hotel quarantine restrictions for people arriving in the UK were imposed.

On the 22nd of February, the Government announced details of the roadmap out of lockdown. By now over 17 million people had been vaccinated and infection rates were continuing to fall.

The roadmap consisted of 4 steps with gaps of about 5 weeks between them to allow the impact of the easing of restrictions to be assessed before moving on to the next step.

All the dates in the roadmap indicated by stars above were provisional and subject to change. Moving on depended on the following criteria being met:

1. The vaccine programme continues to go to plan
2. Evidence shows that vaccines are reducing deaths and numbers requiring hospital treatment.
3. Infection rates do not risk a surge in hospital admissions.
4. New variants do not change the risk of lifting restrictions.

Those vaccinated in early groups were now being called for their second doses and Ludham started to plan for a post lockdown future.

On the 8th of March, with the 4 criteria having been met and with infections and hospital admissions continuing to fall, Step 1 of the roadmap was implemented and schools reopened. Ludham School was one of these schools. Children in secondary schools were required to carry out regular Covid tests (lateral flow tests). Nationally the number of vaccines given passed 20 million doses. Problems with vaccine supply remained a problem and limited the roll out, but the UK was still far ahead of most countries in vaccinations.

In the following week, UK Track and Trace were very active trying to trace a few people who had the new Brazilian variant of the virus. One person in particular proved very difficult to find but he was eventually tracked down. Virus cases in North Norfolk continued to fall rapidly.

Local walks were still permitted in Ludham and spring flowers at How Hill brightened a trip out.

By the 22nd of March over half of the UK adult population had been vaccinated, but there was concern at the news of a 3rd wave starting again in Europe. This appeared to be caused by the variant which had begun in the UK at the end of 2020.

The Easter break was early in 2021, and Ludham remained in lockdown over the holiday period, but restrictions were starting to ease. In particular, on the 29th of March the requirement to stay local was removed which meant that Ludham people could travel further from home and visit places like the beach again. The Government continued to advise caution and people should stay as local as possible. Churches Together in Ludham  celebrated Easter and the easing of restrictions by giving each of the residents of the Old Vicarage Care Home a pot of primroses. Easter services were held at the Methodist Church but St Catherine's remained closed due to building work on the new kitchen and toilets at the base of the tower. Cases of Covid 19 continued to fall rapidly in the area.

On the 5th of April, the Government announced that Step One of the Roadmap out of Lockdown had been a success and that Step Two would go ahead on the 12th of April as planned. This meant that people could book self contained holiday accommodation in the UK from this date. International travel was still banned and the Government had not made a decision on whether this could restart on 12th of May as planned.

Ludham suddenly became busier with people. Tourists were once again seen in the village and the empty caravan sites quickly filled up to capacity. Hire boat traffic also returned to the rivers with moorings once again filled with boats.

Vaccinations continued to be rolled out rapidly with over 33 million people having received a first dose. Second doses of the vaccine increased significantly with about 400,000 doses being given every day. For Ludham residents, vaccinations could be obtained at Hoveton Village Hall via the local GP surgery, or a vaccination could be booked via the national scheme although this could mean traveling a greater distance. All persons over 50 years old had been offered a vaccine and the roll out to 45s and over began in mid April.

Although rates of infection has dropped significantly in the UK, there was considerable concern about new waves of infections in other countries across the world. Many European counties were experiencing high levels of infection and a huge surge of cases in India set records for the numbers of daily new cases. Indian health services were in crisis with a severe shortage of oxygen supplies. All of this cast serious doubts on plans to open up international travel from the UK on the 17th of May. Instead the Government increased restrictions and quarantine requirements on many countries. No decision was taken on international travel plans at this time.

Face masks remained a requirement for indoor settings and the sale of masks for charity remained popular.

Letter of thanks to Brenda Standen for selling facemasks

Step 3 of the road map out of lockdown was due to begin on the 17th of May. In the run up to this date, there was a lot of concern about the "Indian Variant" of Covid 19 (B617) which was now circulating in some parts of the UK and causing a local weekly doubling in cases. Local surge testing was put in place and vaccinations offered to all age groups in these areas in an effort to contain the new variant.

Ludham was not in one of the areas with the Indian Variant and vaccinations were continuing rapidly. Under 40s were now being offered a first dose.

Despite the concerns about the new variant, the Government announced that Phase 3 would go ahead on the 17th of May. This further easing of restrictions would allow people to hug and to gather indoors in a limited way. Indoor hospitality was to reopen under some social distancing rules. A "Green List" of countries to which travel would be permitted was published, as follows:

Australia, Brunei, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Iceland, Israel and Jerusalem, New Zealand, Portugal, Singapore, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands and St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha.

This list was very disappointing to potential holiday makers, but bookings to Portugal suddenly became very popular. Countries like Australia, New Zealand and Singapore were on the list but were not admitting UK visitors, so it was still not possible to go there.

Despite all the concerns, Step 3 of the road map was implemented on the 17th of May. The local pubs reopened to indoor hospitality and Ludham now had an air of cautious near normality.

At the beginning of June, cases were beginning to rise again, driven by the new variant from India. However, the vaccination programme was having an effect and the 1st of June was the first day to record no deaths in the previous 24 hours since the start of the pandemic. Half of the UK adult population had now had 2 doses of the vaccine and over 75% had had one dose.

The end of the pandemic seemed in sight although there was talk of delaying Step 4. The Looking After Ludham Scheme produced its final report and prepared to stand down.

On the 14th of June, with cases of the Indian Variant, now known as the Delta Variant, rising very rapidly, the Government announced that Stage 4 of the Roadmap could not take place on the 21st of June. A delay of 4 weeks to the 19th of July was put in place. This effectively meant that the country remained at Step 3. It was now clear that the transmission rate for the Delta Variant was much higher than for previous variants and cases continued to rise. The good news was that two doses of the vaccine were effective against the Delta variant and hospital admissions, although rising, were not rising as fast as they had been in previous waves of the pandemic. Vaccinations were opened up to everyone over 21 and surge testing put in place in various hotspots round the country. Ludham was not a hotspot, but cases were rising quickly in the area. In North Norfolk, cases, on the 18th of June, stood at 240. This was a rise of 127 on the previous week.

Local Groups in Ludham began meeting again although the Step 3 rules meant that these meetings had to be outdoors. After a very wet May, the hot sunshine of early June brought many people out and about. The rivers were once again packed with hire boats and tourists were visiting the area again.

The Womack Herons meet at How Hill for a picnic.


The Ludham Rewilding Group form a socially distanced working party at Hunter's Yard

As June moved into July, the number of cases of Covid 19 continued to rise rapidly, doubling week on week. This rise was driven almost entirely by the Delta Variant. The wave of cases appeared to be moving from West to East and Ludham was less affected at first, but cases in Norfolk were still rising and it was clear that the country was in the grip of a third wave. The vaccination programme continued to progress very well with 85% of UK adults having had a first dose and almost 65% having had both doses. Everyone over 18 was now invited to come forward for vaccination and the plan was to have offered everyone at least one dose by July 19th. One very important effect of the vaccination programme was that despite a rapid rise in cases, the rise in hospital admissions was much lower.

On the 5th of July, the Government announced that the delayed Step 4 of the roadmap would be implemented on July 19th. They stressed that the pandemic was far from over and that they expected cases to rise to 50,000 new infections per day by the 19th. Despite this, they now felt that the vaccination programme had broken the link between cases and hospital admissions and the UK would have to learn to live with Covid 19.

The Government said that the implementation of Step 4 would be in 5 parts as follows:

1. "The vaccination wall" would be reinforced by reducing the interval between doses from 12 to 8 weeks and by offering two doses to everyone over 18 by mid September.

2. All legal restrictions would be removed and people would have to make their own personal decisions on matters like mask wearing, social distancing and meeting indoors.

3. Test and trace would continue to operate and it would still be necessary for contacts of positive cases to self isolate. Many restrictions in schools would be removed and this would coincide with the start of the school holidays. The self isolating rule was set to continue until the 16th of August and this sparked a wave of criticism suggesting millions of people could be self isolating by then.

4. Border controls would remain along with a red list of countries from which people arriving must isolate in a hotel. However, UK people who had been double vaccinated in the UK could not go on holiday to countries on the Amber list and return without having to quarantine. People arriving would still need to be tested. This sparked a surge in holiday bookings although many countries would not admit UK citizens due to the delta variant.

5. The Government would continue to monitor the situation and might make changes at any time.

This very complicated list meant that life in Ludham was set to return to near normality and that formal lockdown would be over by mid July. Despite this, many local people remained both sceptical and cautious. The alarming rise in cases was continuing and by the 9th of July it was past 30,000 new cases a day and doubling every week. All eyes were now on the data.

Some people started calling the 19th of July "Freedom Day", but when it arrived and all lockdown legal restrictions were removed, it was clear that the pandemic was far from over. The Government, warned people to be very careful and to avoid crowded indoor situations. Face mask wearing was no longer compulsory in settings like shops, but most people continued to wear them. The Government warned that new cases of the Delta variant could rise above 50,000 per day and this very quickly happened.

The relaxation of lockdown restrictions coincided with the England football team reaching the Euro 2020 final and there was some suggestion that the large celebrating crowds were fueling the rise in cases. England lost in the final and, although no link could be proved, the rate of new infections began to fall again. As the end of July approached there was a sharp downturn in new cases. The reasons for this were unclear, but the Government warned that the full effects of the ending of restrictions had not yet worked through into the numbers. Deaths and hospital admissions continued to rise but at much lower rates than before and it was hoped that with so many people now having antibodies to Covid 19, the virus would not be able to spread effectively and we could learn to live alongside Covid 19 from now on.

Earlier in the pandemic, many people had downloaded the NHS Covid 19 App to their smartphones. This app was able to warn people when they had been in close contact with someone with Covid 19. When this happened, the app gave a cheerful pinging sound and flashed up a warning telling the owner that they must self isolate for 10 days. This requirement to isolate had not been removed in Step 4 of the road map and was not scheduled to be lifted until the 16th of August. The consequence of this and the large rise in new cases was that the app told over half a million people per week they needed to self isolate in late July. This meant that many companies began to struggle as so many staff were absent from work isolating. This situation introduced a new word into the language - the "Pingdemic".

In Ludham, the village had a look of normality. There were tourists visiting once more and there was a bustle of activity. The Ludham Archive announced it would resume face to face meetings in September and many other groups were restarting. Was this the end of the lockdown?

On the 16th of August 2021, the need for people to self isolate if they had been in contact with someone with Covid was removed for those who were double vaccinated. The phone app was modified to reflect this. With double vaccinations now above 80% of the population, this change effectively ended the pingdemic and thus the lockdown measures.

Although this was not the end of the Covid Pandemic and cases were still rising, the vaccine had now broken the link between infections and ending up in hospital. The lockdown was now over and Ludham resumed a very cautious normality.

That is the end of the lockdown story on this page, but please, feel free to keep sending us your pictures and stories of lockdown. This truly was history in the making.

Ludham 14th September 2021.