Shielding advice for vulnerable people in York and North Yorkshire ends today
Nearly four million people across the UK will no longer be asked to shield to protect themselves from the serious side-effects of Covid-19.
Vulnerable people in York and North Yorkshire will no longer be asked to shield to protect themselves from the serious side-effects of Covid-19 from today.
Shielding will come to an end in England and Wales, while plans for Scotland and Northern Ireland have not yet been finalised.
Ruth Potter is Charity Manager at Older Citizens Advocacy in York, and says it's been a difficult time for many people: "I don't think there's going to be a big rush of people running out on to the street; I think a lot of people will still be cautious.
"Not everybody has had their second vaccine yet, and a number of people are caring for other relatives. Talking to our volunteers and clients - some of them still want a telephone service rather than face-to-face.
"We're planning on resuming some face-to-face services from the 12th of April, but only in exceptional circumstances as some of our clients are quite happy that they don't have to travel in to speak to us.
"It's been hard for people who are shielding to not be able to go out, and to be frightened of catching or spreading the virus. Important issues like older people who have been able to go out and get shopping before the pandemic might now find doing that difficult.
"I think people have generally been quite pragmatic about it, and understood the reasons why. However, I can imagine it's been quite frustrating for people.
"We've been putting on social events over video conferencing for our clients and looked at how to support our volunteers. Around 60% of our volunteers would be over retirement age, and a lot of those volunteers were shielding as well.
"I think people will want to be out in the fresh air again, and out in the gardens to make sure that they do have that strength.
"It'll be the things that people did before, such as visiting friends, neighbours and relatives. It's the normal things that people did in life which have now become abnormal because of the pandemic".
Earlier this month, Dr Jenny Harries, the deputy chief medical officer for England, said: "With the prevalence of the virus in the community continuing to decrease, now is the right time for people to start thinking about easing up on these more rigid guidelines.
"If you have been shielding, we strongly urge you to take extra precautions following April 1st to keep yourself as safe as possible, such as continuing to observe social distancing and working from home.
"We will continue to monitor all of the evidence and adjust this advice should there be any changes in infection rates.''
More than 30 million people in the UK have had their first dose of a Covid-19 vaccination and more than three million both shots.