Leeds prepares for the first weekend with pubs re-opened

Beer gardens opened on Monday 12th April

Author: Hannah NorburyPublished 16th Apr 2021

People across Leeds have been preparing for this weekend (16th April), as it's the first time the pubs will be back open.

Six night marshals will be walking around key spots like Call Lane and Greek street to provide support to businesses and customers.

It's expected to be a busy weekend, and there's plenty of space, as the council's given 30 extra outdoor areas to hospitality and allowed them to trade for an extra hour until midnight.

Mark Durham, who's from the council's city management team said:

"We counted 36 thousand people on Monday on Briggate, using our foot fall cameras, which is equivalent to the pre-Christmas 2020 Saturdays, so I don't think it will be much more busy on Saturday than it's already been this week.

"Night marshals will support door staff, help with queues, point people towards buses and taxis to make sure people get home safe, and making sure outdoor areas are set up safely."

The Yorkshire Ambulance Service say they've already seen a 3 percent rise in demand since everything re-opened on Monday.

Now, they're urging people to act responsible when they go out with friends and family this weekend.

Claire Lindsay, one of the operation managers said:

"We have anticipated an increase in the number of calls, we've prepared as much as we can, but what we are also asking is that the public are responsible in their actions.#

"Behave responsibly, be careful, have plans to get yourselves home, more than anything just try to look after each other."

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