Advice to Cornwall as we become only mainland area in Tier 1 of Covid restrictions
The second national lockdown has now ended and the tiered system has taken hold
Cornwall has officially become the only part of mainland England to be placed into Tier 1 of the coronavirus restrictions.
The second national lockdown has now ended and the only other areas also in the lowest level are the Isles of Scilly and Isle of Wight.
But residents in the Duchy are urged to remain on guard.
Businesses can reopen, although strict public health guidelines will remain in place, which include:
• You must wear a face covering in most indoor public settings, unless you have an exemption
• If you can work from home, you should continue to do so
• You should follow the rules on meeting others safely: no more than six people at a time
• You should attend school or college as normal, unless you are self-isolating. Schools, universities, colleges and early years settings remain open in all tiers
• You should walk or cycle where possible, plan ahead and avoid busy times and routes when travelling
“We are so grateful to our residents for their continued support.
“However, now is not the time to relax, we need to be on our guard more than ever before, if we are to remain in this position.
“The tiers are reviewed every two weeks, and we are close to being in tier two, so I ask each and every resident of Cornwall to do their bit and remain vigilant if we want to stay in tier one and not see a rise in cases in the winter months ahead.”
Cllr Julian German, leader of Cornwall Council
“We have worked so hard to keep levels of coronavirus down across Cornwall, the last thing we would like to see is people treat this as a chance to relax.
“I would urge everyone to continue to follow the public health guidelines.
“There is light at the end of the tunnel now with the positive news we have seen on potential vaccines, it would be a huge waste of effort to throw away all of our hard work now.”
Rachel Wigglesworth, Director of Public Health for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly
So what are the rules of Tier 1?
In Tier 1 (medium alert):
⚫ you must not socialise in groups larger than 6 people, indoors or outdoors, other than where a legal exemption applies. This is called the ‘rule of 6’
⚫ businesses and venues can remain open, in a COVID secure manner, other than those which remain closed by law, such as nightclubs
⚫ hospitality businesses selling food or drink for consumption on their premises are required to:
- provide table service only, for premises that serve alcohol
- close between 11pm and 5am (hospitality venues in airports, ports, on transport services and in motorway service areas are exempt)
- stop taking orders after 10pm
⚫ hospitality businesses and venues selling food and drink for consumption off the premises can continue to do so after 10pm as long as this is through delivery service, click-and-collect or drive-through
⚫ early closure (11pm) applies to casinos, cinemas, theatres, concert halls, museums, bowling alleys, amusement arcades, funfairs, theme parks, adventure parks and activities and bingo halls. Cinemas, theatres and concert halls can stay open beyond 11pm in order to conclude performances that start before 10pm
⚫ public attendance at outdoor and indoor events (performances and shows) is permitted, limited to whichever is lower: 50% capacity, or either 4,000 people outdoors or 1,000 people indoors
⚫ public attendance at spectator sport and business events can resume inside and outside, subject to social contact rules and limited to whichever is lower: 50% capacity, or either 4,000 people outdoors or 1,000 people indoors
⚫ places of worship remain open, but you must not attend or socialise in groups of more than 6 people while there, unless a legal exemption applies
⚫ weddings and funerals can go ahead with restrictions on numbers of attendees – 15 people can attend wedding ceremonies and receptions, 30 people can attend funeral ceremonies, and 15 people can attend linked commemorative events
⚫ organised outdoor sport, physical activity and exercise classes can continue
⚫ organised indoor sport, physical activity and exercise classes can continue to take place, if the rule of 6 is followed. There are exceptions for indoor disability sport, sport for educational purposes, and supervised sport and physical activity for under-18s, which can take place with larger groups mixing
⚫ if you live in a tier 1 area and travel to an area in a higher tier you should follow the rules for that area while you are there. Avoid travel to or overnight stays in tier 3 areas other than where necessary, such as for work, education, youth services, to receive medical treatment, or because of caring responsibilities. You can travel through a tier 3 area as part of a longer journey
⚫ for international travel see the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office travel advice for your destination and the travel corridors list
Find out more about the measures that apply in Tier 1 areas