All areas in Sussex remain with the Covid alert level of medium, the lowest of three possible tiers.

It’s the same in much of Surrey too with the exception of Elmbridge which moves up to ‘High’ at midnight on Saturday.

It means unlike the rest of the county they can only meet indoors with people from their household.

You can read about what each tier means and their associated restrictions here:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/local-covid-alert-levels-what-you-need-to-know

If you have news for Sussex and Surrey, contact us on news@susyradio.com

Crawley could end up like parts of the north of England after the collapse of the coal industry due to the slowdown at Gatwick, says the town’s council leader.

Peter Lamb warns, “We are talking about a generation of the town’s young people having their economic future devastated,” and has called for more targeted support after the airport announced in August it was laying off a third of its staff due to low passenger numbers.

It’s in stark contrast to before the pandemic when the area enjoyed some of the highest rates of employment in the UK thanks to Gatwick.

It comes as Crawley Food Bank says its seen demand more than double due to the coronavirus and expects this to increase further as the furlough scheme winds down.

The BBC has spoken to those in Crawley affected by the airport’s slowdown which you can read here.

If you have news for Sussex and Surrey, contact us on news@susyradio.com

Air Ambulance Kent Sussex Surrey celebrates 31 years of service next month.

Founded in 1989 by Kate Chivers the service operates out of Redhill Aerodrome and is the country’s only 24-hour Helicopter Emergency Medical Service, with its crew of pilots, doctors and paramedics flying over 2,500 missions each year.

Costing more than £14m a year to run, it’s largely funded through donations and fundraising which covers 89% of its costs.

It’s service was commended recently when it was named 2020’s Charity of the year by Charity Times.

You can find out more about the Air Ambulance and how it operates here: https://www.aakss.org.uk/

If you have news for Sussex and Surrey, contact us on news@susyradio.com

1 in 5 attractions in the south east will remain closed for the rest of 2020.

In Kent, Sussex and Surrey 83 out of 194 museums were closed in September.

While some have reopened with new rules, 39 museums in the region say they will be closed until next year

Some exhibitions have benefitted from the government’s Culture Recovery grants, but many sites stand to lose hundreds of thousands of pounds in revenue.

Hever Castle in Kent is expected to lose at least £1.2m as a result of lockdown and restrictions.

More than nine out of ten West Sussex pupils are back in their school according to West Sussex County Council. 

The average pupil attendance last week was 93.2% for West Sussex, above the national average of 89%.

The average attendance of pupils with additional needs – in West Sussex was 87% last week, again above the national average of 84%.

 Teachers are working hard to ensure children who aren’t able to be in school  because of COVID-19 can access their learning materials.