Today marks two years since the UK entered our first national lockdown, something that somehow feels relatively recent but ages ago at the same time. The same can be said for much of the two years since.

We have all been on a rollercoaster over these past two years, and it will have affected us all in different ways. Those early weeks of the first lockdown were like nothing I’ve ever experienced. It seems almost unthinkable now, but we spent months cut off from each other, only going out for essentials or exercise on otherwise deserted streets. We’re in a very different place now, despite the pandemic still being very strongly with us.

But I don’t particularly want to get drawn into the big picture view of the pandemic here, but rather look at the impact it has had on Medway, where we are now, and what it means for us going forward.