A council is urging members of the public to stay away from their offices in the wake of coronavirus concerns.

Maldon District Council has taken this decision to mitigate the effect the virus would have on services and staff.

At an extraordinary meeting held yesterday at the council, councillors agreed to suspend all meetings with immediate effect.

A spokesman said: “In order to protect our residents, and our staff who will be striving to maintain our services in a very challenging and changing situation, we would ask that customers do not visit the council offices.

“Thank you for your understanding at this time.”

Residents are asked to fill in an online form on maldon.gov.uk or call 01621 854477 if the matter is extremely urgent.