News in Macclesfield

Music must be turned down low, ketchup sachets will replace bottles and pints should be ordered on your smartphone in pubs and restaurants in England, new guidance from the Government has said.

The guidelines published on Wednesday, ahead of lockdown measures easing on 4 July, ask restaurant and pub bosses to ensure that customers and staff can be safe while enjoying a drink or a meal.

Frontline workers who have been keeping our communities and health system going throughout the lockdown are being offered free equine psychotherapy to help them cope with the trauma's they may be dealing with.

The offer of help has been put forward by Maggie Falconer, who founded Staffordshire and Cheshire Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (SCEAP) as an alternative therapy to more traditional methods.

Two Macclesfield councillors have welcomed Cheshire East's launch of the second phase of the local discretionary grant scheme, which will open for applications at 8am on Friday 26 June.

The has already implemented the first phase of this grant scheme which closed on 15 June, receiving over 450 applications from small business which are currently being assessed.

Today's announcement that pubs, restaurants, and salons are among the businesses reopening on 4 July left owners breathing a sigh of relief, but those in other sectors are left waiting.

In his address to parliament this afternoon, Boris Johnson also said the two-metre social distancing rule will be dropped and replaced with "one metre plus".

A Bollington woman who has signed up for a 156-mile race across the Sahara Desert had to bring her training to a dramatic halt as she spotted a pigeon hanging upside down after getting tangled in a tree with a fishing line.

Caroline Constable was halfway through a 34-mile jaunt on Saturday when she noticed that the bird was precariously hanging out of a tree along the Macclesfield Canal near Daven Road, Congleton.

Boris Johnson has today announced the next stage of ending lockdown.

Macclesfield's pubs, bars and restaurants now have permission to reopen from July 4th.

Cheshire Police are appealing for information following reports of racial abuse towards a woman and a 10-year-old girl during Macclesfield's Black Lives Matter Protest.

Macclesfield Nub News initially reported on the incident in the days after the protest which took place on 5 June.

Cheshire East Council is stepping up its focus on active travel as part of its plans to support Macclesfield and the borough through the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Over the last few weeks, town and parish councils and local ward members have submitted more than 500 local ideas as to what measures may work in their towns and villages. The council is now developing a series of projects, informed by these ideas, that will be delivered this summer, including:

Cheshire Police are urging people not to attend an illegal rave they suspect is being organised for Macclesfield Forest this weekend.

So far there have only been a small number of incidents in the county, although there have been others in nearby counties, some of which have resulted in serious physical and sexual assaults.

Dozens of people turned out on Tuesday (16 June) to pay their respects to a 'true gentleman' and familiar face in Macclesfield.

Martin Oddie worked at the bookies in Broken Cross for 48 years, initially when it was Bill Moores then Coral for the last 45.