News
Greater Manchester gym refuses to close as owner says it’s essential business
Is this the right thing to do?
Fitness For Life on Manchester Road in Bury says it will be staying open during the second national lockdown, despite the new restrictions.
Jayne Deakin, 51, who has worked in the fitness industry for more than two decades believes her business should be classed as essential and therefore able to remain open.
Speaking to the Bury Times, she said: “The only reason I’m doing this is for my members.
“I’m frightened to death, I’m not daft and I know there’s a virus so I’m really worried, but these are the people I get out of bed every day for.
“There’s no logic in shutting a gym – not when I’ve spent thousands of pounds making it covid safe.
“They’re not giving a valid enough reason – how can garden centres, and click and collect alcohol from pubs be essential, but gyms that keep people physically and mentally fit and healthy, and able to fight the virus aren’t?”
Fitness For Life has now been reopen for 110 days and has had no cases linked to the site.
Latest NHS Test and Trace figures (week 43) show that of the 107,046 cases reported in that week, 33,233 had common exposure with another.
From this, the data has calculated 10,036 common locations or settings including restaurants, schools, supermarkets and gyms that were reported.
This data shows that gyms accounted for 2.8% of all common locations reported (based on shared postcode).
This puts gyms behind secondary schools, which takes up 6.8% of all the common locations and supermarkets (11.2%).
The data explains that locations with more visitors are more likely to be identified as common exposures and that no adjustments have been made for how often a common location is visited.
This means that while the data shows that 930 people (2.8%) had visited the gym it doesn’t explain that they caught coronavirus at the gym.
Mrs Deakin added: “These people need that reason to get out of bed in the morning – I’ve got full classes booked all day tomorrow.
“The only people who aren’t coming are people either in the police or married to police officers, or those in the NHS who can’t come because of their jobs.
“For everyone else it’s a lifeline – I don’t know if I’m doing the right thing, if I’ve made the right decision, but I know in my heart I’ve got to do what I believe in.
“It’s not about money, I could shut that door, put my computer on, and teach through Zoom, but it’s not about that.
“It’s been a difficult eight months and now it’s dark, it’s wet, it’s that time of year when depression and anxiety is harder, my members need me.
“It feels so empty, you’ve not got that interaction you just do the class and then you go, there’s just a feeling of loneliness.
“For some of my members I’m the only thing they see in a day, I can’t take that away from them. As long as my members want to come I will try and be there.”
She added that she’s worried about being fined for staying open. Currently, the fines begin at £1,000 for businesses found to be breaking the coronavirus restrictions and double until the fourth offence, when it reaches £10,000.
She added: “I’m 51 years old and I’ve never been in trouble with the police so I’m absolutely terrified.
“I’m scared I’m going to get fined, I can’t pay fines but I’ll find a way to make it work – what else am I going to do, shut my doors?
“I’m not blindly following the rules without reason.
“There’s been a lot of backlash, people telling me I deserve to be fined because I’m breaking the rules but I’m not – I’m making a stand for what I believe in.”
News
Oasis announce huge reunion tour as Liam and Noel Gallagher ‘make peace’
The news we’ve all been waiting for!
After years of will-they-won’t-they speculation, Oasis are officially BACK together for a reunion tour.
The Gallagher brothers have put aside their differences in the name of music, making thousands of fans extremely happy in the process.
The band teased the news on their socials over the weekend, posting a video on Sunday morning with today’s date (Tuesday, August 27th) and the time 8am.
And now shows have been announced for multiple dates in the UK and Ireland, with tickets going live this Saturday, August 31st.
The legendary Mancunian rockers will take to the stage next summer, with gigs in Cardiff, London, Edinburgh, Dublin and, of course, Manchester.
15 years after splitting, the band confirmed they would be back for 14 shows, saying: “The guns have fallen silent. The stars have aligned. The great wait is over. Come see. It will not be televised”.
The gigs will be Oasis’s ‘only shows in Europe next year’, with tickets on sale this Saturday at 8am in Ireland and 9am in the UK.
The Oasis 2025 tour dates in full:
July
4th – Cardiff, Principality Stadium
5th – Cardiff, Principality Stadium
11th – Manchester, Heaton Park
12th – Manchester, Heaton Park
19th – Manchester, Heaton Park
20th – Manchester, Heaton Park
25th – London, Wembley Stadium
26th – London, Wembley Stadium
August
2nd – London, Wembley Stadium
3rd – London, Wembley Stadium
8th – Edinburgh, Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
9th – Edinburgh, Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
16th – Dublin, Croke Park
17th – Dublin, Croke Park
You can grab your tickets HERE.
News
Stagecoach hiring over 100 new bus drivers for Bee Network with £31k salaries
Fancy a career change?
Stagecoach Manchester is hiring over 100 new bus drivers to work from its Oldham depot, following the second phase of the Bee Network launch in March.
You can apply for a range of roles, from positions with no experience required to fully qualified bus drivers.
Successful applicants will receive full training as part of the job, and trainees will get paid to train. Then after only 12 months’ service at Stagecoach, drivers can expect to earn up to £16 per hour, which equates to £31.6K per year, before overtime.
As well as that, drivers that already hold a PCV licence may be eligible to receive a £1,200 joining bonus.
Stagecoach
There’s also a host of other benefits available to all Stagecoach employees, like 28 days paid holiday, generous pension and free Stagecoach bus travel for successful applicants and a companion.
Rob Jones, Managing Director at Stagecoach Manchester said: “Expanding our offering in Oldham means we’ll be investing more in the economy and supporting our local community, as well as strengthening our workforce.
“Whether you’re looking for a career change or you’re a fully qualified, experienced bus driver, there’s a role for everyone here in Oldham.
“We’re looking for personable and dedicated drivers who are ready to help us build on the success of the Bee Network and connect the people of Oldham and Greater Manchester with the places and people that are important to them.”
Stagecoach
Phil Cornwall, bus driver at Stagecoach Manchester, said: “I’ve been a driver at Stagecoach for 25 years and I couldn’t recommend it more.
“From the perks to the people to the passengers, it really is a great place to work.”
To apply, head to the Stagecoach website HERE.
Two men have now been charged with murder, following the discovery of a human torso in Kersal Dale.
As well as that, more suspected human remains were also discovered this morning, Monday April 29th, in an alleyway close to the railway lines off Worsley Road, Eccles.
This follows earlier discoveries of human remains over the past three weeks, at Kersal Dale, Blackleach Reservoir and Colliery Wood, all in Salford.
Greater Manchester Police
Michal Jaroslaw Polchowski (25/04/1956) and Marcin Majerkiewicz (10/04/1982) both of Worsley Road, Eccles, have been charged with murder.
They are set to appear at Tameside Magistrates Court this afternoon.
While formal identification is still ongoing, the remains found at Kersal Dale are believed to be of a local man in his 60s. The remains found at the other three locations are still to be tested, but police are confident they belong to the same victim.
ACC Sarah Jackson said: “We have had large numbers of officers, staff and specialists working diligently on this investigation over the last three weeks. It has been very much a large, collective effort, with the victim and family at the heart of it from the outset.
“We have specially trained officers deployed to support the family as they come to terms with this tragic news. They are aware of this morning’s further discovery and will continue to be kept up to date with how we are progressing.
“Despite the charges brought today, our work is far from over.
“The scenes we already have established in Bury and Salford will remain in place for much of this week whilst our searches and enquiries continue. Local officers will continue to patrol the impacted areas to provide reassurance.
“We will continue following every line of enquiry to recover and reunite the victim with his family, bringing a dignified end to this terrible scenario.
“I’d like to thank the communities of Salford and beyond for their cooperation throughout this investigation. I know this incident has come as a shock, and the support we’ve had from those in the area is very much appreciated.”
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