Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Coupar Angus coronavirus outbreak: Concern over 30 factory workers living in six-room property

The Army was involved at the 2 Sisters chicken processing site outbreak clear up.
The Army was involved at the 2 Sisters chicken processing site outbreak clear up.

The operation to trace employees of the 2 Sisters factory has exposed the difficult living conditions of some of its workers.

Environmental health officers raised concerns about a property just a few yards from the Coupar Angus plant.

Around 30 people are living in the six-room property, which is listed as a House of Multiple Occupancy.

The Courier understands several occupants tested positive for Covid-19.

Perth and Kinross Council officials returned on Friday to offer extra support to its residents and landlord.

A spokeswoman said they were “reassured” that there was no need for further action.

“All people in Perth and Kinross deserve to live in safe, sanitary conditions and to be supported through ill health.

“Council officers attended an HMO in Coupar Angus today to offer support to the landlord and the residents.

“As the household is self-isolating, we are ensuring that residents have sufficient laundry, kitchen, toileting and washing facilities within the property, as well as supplying food.

“Following the visit, officers were reassured that residents were safe and no additional housing needs were identified.”

Allegations of overcrowding at the property had been flagged up to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

Area Commander Gordon Pryde said: “We are aware of alleged concerns relating to a property within the Perth and Kinross Council area and our specialist officers are available to provide the appropriate support to our local authority partners to address any risks related to fire safety .”

The 2 Sisters Food Group declined to comment on the living conditions of staff.

Local SNP MP Pete Wishart said: “It is massively concerning to hear that some factory workers are living in accommodation which has many people sharing a room.

“I would argue that that sort of living environment would be unacceptable in normal times, never mind when we are trying to control a deadly virus.”

He added: “I am pleased to hear that Perth and Kinross Council are looking at this matter and I am keen to ensure that everything possible is done to ensure that this virus cannot take a hold again on such a scale.”

Council crews have so far delivered more than 700 food parcels to isolating households connected to the outbreak.

The local authority has also carried out 665 welfare checks to make sure all employees get the appropriate support and assistance.

Police Scotland has received nine calls about workers not complying with guidelines.

Council leader Murray Lyle said: “Perth and Kinross Council’s decisive response to the outbreak has been critical in preventing widespread community transmission of Coronavirus, and supporting affected workers.

“It has been an extremely challenging situation and I want to thank all Perth and Kinross Council staff who have worked to support staff, many of whom have only just arrived in the country.”