Tier 2 restrictions come into force in Wiltshire today
The national lockdown has now come to an end
Wiltshire officially entered tier two of the Covid alert level today (Wednesday 2nd December).
The new local restrictions have come into force, with areas across the country placed into one of three tiers.
The county is in the "High risk" category, which means no indoor household mixing, only meeting outdoors in groups of up to six and pubs and bars having to close unless they're operating as a restaurant.
Yesterday (1st Dec), the Prime Minister announced that "wet" pubs, who don't serve food, will receive £1,000.
FULL RESTRICTIONS
Every two weeks the government will reassess the tiers and can move areas into different levels if they see fit.
They make the decision based on:
- Case detection rates in all ages
- Case detection rates in over 60s
- The rate at which cases are rising or falling
- The number of positive cases detected as a percentage of tests taken
- Pressure on the NHS
Director of Public Health Wiltshire, Kate Blackburn, says we're in the right tier as it will allow numbers to steadily decrease:
"I think it's the right place for Wiltshire to be at the moment, we had seen our case rates rising quite significantly throughout October and November and in terms of the restrictions that are in place across the different tiers, tier two offers us the best opportunity to bring our case rate down, to reduce viral transmission and to prevent people from becoming ill or even worse outcomes."
WILTSHIRE'S CASE RATES
There is some positive news with the number of Covid-19 cases in the county.
In the last seven days to 25th November there were 397 positive tests recorded in Wiltshire, that's down by 288 from the week before.
This means the seven day rolling rate per 100,000 population is now 79.4, compared to 137 a week ago.
For comparison, the rolling rate in England is 167.8.
The county has also seen a drop in cases in over 65s, the main age group concern for Kate Blackburn.
Meanwhile, the numbers in schools across Wiltshire are also decreasing.
There are currently 38 education settings with positive cases with 2,074 pupils self isolating and 145 members of staff too.
CAN I SEE MY FAMILY AT CHRISTMAS?
No matter what tier you are in currently, everyone has the same rules at Christmas.
Between the 23rd and 27th of December, people will be able to form 'bubbles' with up to two other households.
This means more families will be able to see each other over the festive period.
Each Christmas bubble can meet at home, at a place of worship or an outdoor public place, but existing, more restrictive rules on hospitality and meeting in other venues will be maintained throughout this period.
A joint statement issued by the four UK governments said:
"As 2020 draws to a close, we recognise it has been an incredibly difficult year for us all.
We have all had to make significant sacrifices in our everyday lives, and many religious and community groups have already had to change or forgo their customary celebrations to slow the spread of coronavirus and save lives.
This cannot be a ‘normal’ Christmas. But as we approach the festive period, we have been working closely together to find a way for family and friends to see each other, even if it is for a short time, and recognising that it must be both limited and cautious."
Full coronavirus advice can be found on the gov.uk website.