Prime Minister Boris Johnson set out further changes to lockdown measures in England on Tuesday 23 June.
From Saturday 4 July, pubs, restaurants and hairdressers will be able to reopen, providing they adhere to COVID Secure guidelines. All hospitality indoors will be limited to table-service, and the government guidance encourages minimal staff and customer contact. Businesses are being asked to help NHS Test and Trace respond to any local outbreaks by collecting contact details from customers. Government has also announced that they will re-open hairdressers, with appropriate precautions, including the use of visors.
In order to begin restoring the arts and cultural sector, some leisure facilities and tourist attractions may also reopen, if they can do so safely – this includes outdoor gyms and playgrounds, cinemas, museums, galleries, theme parks and arcades, as well as libraries, social clubs, places of worship and community centres. From 4th July, provided that no more than two households stay together, people will be free to stay overnight in self-contained accommodation, including hotels and bed & breakfasts, as well as campsites as long as shared facilities are kept clean. “Close proximity” venues such as nightclubs, soft-play areas, indoor gyms, swimming pools and spas will need to remain closed for now, as will bowling alleys and water parks. Recreation and sport will be allowed, but indoor facilities, including changing rooms and courts, will remain closed and people are only to play close contact team sports with members of their household.
Following a review, the Prime Minister has also set out that where it is not possible to stay 2ms apart, guidance will allow people to keep a social distance of ‘one metre plus’. This means staying 1m apart, plus mitigations which reduce the risk of transmission. Business who can work from home and 2m apart have been advised to do so by government and to take all necessary precautions. These include, for instance, avoiding face-to-face seating by changing office layouts, reducing the number of people in enclosed spaces, improving ventilation, using protective screens and face coverings, closing non-essential social spaces, providing hand sanitiser and changing shift patterns so that staff work in set teams. Face coverings must continue to be used on public transport.
The ‘Working Safely During Coronavirus’ government guidance has been updated so that it now includes:
- Hotels and other guest accommodation guide
- Working in the visitor economy guide
- Guidance expanded from takeaways to venues providing service at the venue ahead of planned opening, reflect guidance on support bubbles, social distancing, test and trace and feedback from industry.
- Guidance on opening certain businesses and venues in England from 4 July 2020
- New guidance has been added in regard to Social Distancing
- More information has been added to the government Coronavirus FAQs to include what you can and can’t do after 4 July
You can find the full government press release here.