Rhondda Cynon Taf Council is continuing to support the national roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccine, and in partnership with Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board, is providing three Covid-19 Community Vaccination Centres, one at Llantrisant Leisure Centre, one at Rhondda Sports Centre, and another at Cynon Valley Indoor Bowls.

Following the success of the first phase of vaccine roll-out up to the 14th February, the Council-owned Llantrisant Leisure and Rhondda Sport Centres have been remodelled to help provide facilities for the vaccine roll-out.

Rhondda Cynon Taf Council has also stepped up to remodel Cynon Valley Indoor Bowls for use as a Community Vaccination Centre. This replaces the previous Community Vaccination Centre at the Council’s Ty Trevithick offices.

At each of the sites, the Council is providing staffing support to ensure the safety of people attending for vaccinations, which includes site management, queue management, meters and greeters and administrators.

People are reminded that they should not visit the vaccination centres unless they already have a vaccination appointment. This is because the Covid-19 vaccine is currently being rolled out in priority order based on the level of risk faced by different groups from Covid-19.

The groups to be prioritised are decided by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation at a UK level. This priority list is as follows:

residents in a care home for older adults and their carers
all those 80 years of age and over and frontline health and social care workers
all those 75 years of age and over
all those 70 years of age and over and clinically extremely vulnerable individuals
all those 65 years of age and over
all individuals aged 16 years to 64 years with underlying health conditions which put them at higher risk of serious disease and mortality, and unpaid carers
all those 60 years of age and over
all those 55 years of age and over
all those 50 years of age and over

Councillor Andrew Morgan, Leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf Council, said: “I am really pleased that we are able to support the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board in having three Community Vaccination Centres in Rhondda Cynon Taf.

“Throughout the Covid-19 national emergency, RCT Council has worked in partnership with colleagues in Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board to slow the spread of Covid-19 infections in our communities.

“As well as supporting the establishment of Covid-19 Community Vaccination Centres at our sites, our staff are supporting the administration of booking vaccinations for those most at risk, and we will shortly be training more staff to administer the vaccine, so the vaccine can be rolled-out even faster.

“The vaccine offers us an opportunity to change the tide against this deadly virus. However, while we continue to roll out to those groups who at most at risk from the virus, we must all continue to follow the measures put in place to protect the health of ourselves and those around us, especially continuing to social distance, wash our hands regularly, and wearing a mask were required or where there are other people.

“We are at a really critical moment in this health emergency, we are starting to turn the tide against COVID-19. The vaccination programme is rolling out as planned and infection rates are dropping due to the current restrictions. However, we all need to keep following the current rules and any future measures. We cannot be complacent and we cannot let this virus rebound.

“We know how quickly COVID-19 can spread from very low levels in our communities, and its vitally important that each and every one of us plays our part in reducing the spread of this virus.

“Our NHS colleagues are under considerable pressure due to Covid-19, and we are determined to support them in any way possible so they can continue to focus on treating those who need it most.

“The vaccine offers us hope, but we need to continue to suppress this virus to prevent additional deaths until the most vulnerable in our community are protected.”