SCALING back services, meetings with care homes and new social media pages are part of council plans to deal with the coronavirus outbreak on Teesside.

Middlesbrough Mayor Andy Preston called on people to “play their part” in the fight against the deadly virus on Tuesday by heeding the advice offered by the government.

More stringent measures – including non-essential contact with older people and steering clear of pubs, clubs and theatres were offered up on Monday

Working from home if possible has been advised – and people with a high temperature or persistent cough urged to self-isolate for 14 days.

Middlesbrough Council has launched dedicated Facebook and Twitter pages to provide information and field questions.

Mr Preston said: “This pandemic is unprecedented in recent times and it’s probably going to affect each and every one of us for many months to come.

“This is a rapidly developing situation, so it’s incredibly important that people follow the advice from the government and Public Health England.

“Our staff are working around the clock to keep key services up and running, and to safeguard the vulnerable.

“Of course there will be impacts on services – we’ll do our best to keep those to a minimum, and we’ll keep people informed with regular updates.

“This is going to be tough, but if we work together and support one another, we will get through it.”

Meanwhile, bosses at Stockton Council have said services are continuing “as normal” but a scaling back of “non-essential services” is forecast in the next few days.

Stockton Council leader Cllr Bob Cook said teams had put lots of work into “business continuity planning” to manage staff absences.

He added resources would be put where they’re “most needed” – with a particular focus on protecting the most vulnerable.

Cllr Cook said: “We also have well-established partnership working arrangements and support from our local resilience forum – which specialises in emergency planning for complex and rapidly changing situations like this.

“It is important that people remain calm, follow the latest national advice on the steps needed to reduce the spread of infection and use only official sources of information when getting this advice.”

The Labour leader added meetings with care homes and other care providers were taking place.

He added: “We will all need to adapt to different day to day behaviours over the coming weeks and it is essential that we support each other.

“We are sending daily updates to our staff, and key officers are meeting every day to refine and review our plans in light of local and national developments to make sure we can respond to any issues or changes as and when they arise.”