Give local public teams resources for track and trace

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have publicly led track and trace. Now it's time for central government in England to listen.

We hugely appreciate you taking action in solidarity, to help get communities in England safe track and trace we can count on.

Tell Matt Hancock to listen to what communities in England want and desperately need: local, public teams getting resources and leading track and trace.

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Dear Matt Hancock,
I’m writing to you to ask that local, public health protection teams are given the resources for track and trace, not private companies who look set to gain another £528 million potentially from August 23rd onwards.
Last Monday’s announcement that the regional element of track and trace was being strengthened was welcome. However news that the privatised national operation is to be integrated with regional and local teams is not holding up to scrutiny.
Only <a href="https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/opendemocracyuk/government-u-turning-on-the-u-turn-on-local-covid-contact-tracing/">a small number of the tracers</a> are being allocated to regional and local teams as opposed to all of the ‘<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nhs-test-and-trace-service-to-strengthen-regional-contact-tracing">remaining teams</a>’ as we previously understood. Localised responses such as door knocking <a href="https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/ournhs/serco-and-sitel-get-more-public-money-despite-track-and-trace-fiasco/">do not appear to be funded</a>, putting even more pressure on local authorities and public health teams with limited budgets. This cannot go on. 
Today 20 groups across England, from Leamington to Liverpool, Brent to Bristol took action to say loud and clear: <a href="https://twitter.com/We_OwnIt">give local, public teams the cash.</a>
I understand that there is a two week notice period and therefore it is incredibly likely that Serco and Sitel have been contracted <a href="https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/ournhs/serco-and-sitel-get-more-public-money-despite-track-and-trace-fiasco/">to continue their wor</a>k.This is in spite of their repeated failures, including the fact only 57% of close contacts have been reached on average by the national call centre system since Test and Trace launched (according to the government’s own data: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nhs-test-and-trace-england-and-coronavirus-testing-uk-statistics-30-july-to-5-august-2020">NHS Test and Trace statistics 28 May to 5 August 2020: data tables</a>).
Meanwhile, local health protection teams have reached 98% of close contacts on average. This backs up polling by Survation which shows that 40% of the public are less likely to take part in the programme as a result of it being managed by a <a href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/almost-half-dont-trust-serco-22215235">private outsourcing company</a>.
While local authorities, health protection teams and health services staff know their communities and have years of expertise in contact tracing, Serco’s call handlers have repeatedly complained of a lack of training and criticised the entire system.
This puts my loved ones and my community more at risk of this awful virus every day.
I believe that the vital work being done by local authorities, Public Health England local health protection teams and local health services (including GPs and NHS labs) means local, public teams should be put back in charge of track and trace in the community, and contracts with failing private companies should be ended immediately.
For the sake of everyone working so hard to get us through this crisis, making sacrifices for the good of everyone, please stop this atrocious waste of public money and give local authorities the resources they need to scale up the work they’re already doing well. 
Yours sincerely,

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