09/04/2021
Covid lockdown roadmap: the key dates for when restrictions will end and what rules will change
Boris Johnson has set out a four-step exit from the current lockdown - here's what happens next
Lockdown measures were eased on March 29 as part of the roadmap out of lockdown, which saw the stay-at-home rule end and the rule of six return in England.
On April 5, Boris Johnson set out the next step, including the opening of pub gardens and the prospect of foreign summer holidays and vaccination passports for mass audience events.
England will move to step two on April 12.
These measures are part of the four key steps over four months to bring the UK completely out of lockdown.
The roadmap is underpinned by four key “tests” that are linked to data, which will act like a checklist that must be met before moving onto the next step of reopening.
The four tests will determine whether: the vaccine roll-out is going as planned; vaccines are effective in bringing down deaths and hospitalisations; case numbers are not rising so fast that the NHS risks being overwhelmed; new variant do not create unforeseen risks.
Another big change is the scrapping of tiers, to be replaced with "steps".
Step one, part one applied to all of England from March 8, with the second part from March 29
Regions will enter step two on April 12, and step three no earlier than May 17.
Step four, which will come into force no earlier than Jun 21, should see "all legal limits on social contact" lifted.
The Prime Minister said it was thanks to the UK public "that we can continue on our road map to freedom".
It comes as half of the UK population, now have Covid 19 antibodies and deaths from the virus are at the lowest level since October, official figures reveal. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) findings, which on Mar 30 prompted fresh call to ease restrictions, suggest there is widespread immunity either due to previous infection or vaccination.
As of April 8, a total of 31,807,124 people have received one dose of the vaccine, with over 6m having received both jabs. Completing inoculation of the nearly 30m Britons between doses is the government's priority.
The roadmap out of lockdown
Non-essential shops
Pubs and restaurants
Foreign holidays
Weddings
Gyms
Hairdressers
The third test has triggered early debate, because rising cases alone will not be enough to stop reopening. That will happen only if rising cases risk overwhelming hospitals.
The four steps are separated five weeks apart. That leaves four weeks to monitor the impact of the preceding step and one week to give people notice.
The reopening is designed to happen uniformly across England, so there is no return to the tier system.
Below are the four steps of the roadmap. The dates are the earliest dates at which the next step could happen, with delays possible if the data takes a negative turn.
The first step, which began on March 8, is split into two sections, initially focusing on getting schools open again and reuniting families who have spent so long kept apart.
All schools in England, both primary and secondary, have now reopened, with Secondary pupil being tested twice a week in schools and at home.
School sports also returned, both indoor and outdoor, so pupils of all ages can play football and do PE lessons. Schools can set their own rules.
‘Wraparound’ childcare has resumed, which means after school sports and extra curricular clubs can take place.
There were also changes in care home rules on Mar 8. Residents were once again allowed to have a single visitor, and that individual can visit repeated times rather than the trip being a one-off.
The visitor and care home resident will be allowed to hold hands, but other close contact is not allowed. The visitor must get a Covid-19 test beforehand and wear protective equipment.
The outdoor socialising rules changed in the second section of reopening.
From March 29, six people from six different households were allowed to meet outside, meaning the so-called ‘rule of six’ returned. Alternatively, two households could also meet outside. This means two families, who potentially together total more than six people, can meet. This can happen in both outdoor public spaces and in back gardens.
The ‘stay at Home’ guidiance has been dropped, similarly the Government has dropped its “stay local” messaging, meaning that households are no longer explicitly told to remain in their geographical area.
While people will still be encouraged to minimise travel, there will not be punishments for someone who drives a few hours for a meet-up outside, then returns that day.
Outdoor organised sports for both adults and children also returned. Outdoor swimming pools, driving and shooting ranges, riding arenas at riding centres, archery venues and climbing walls reopened, as did outdoor gyms.
The return of team sports are allowed in formalised settings, meaning that five-a-side football matches are allowed but a dozen friends kicking a ball in a park is not. Indoor sports are off limits.
All non-essential shops will be allowed to open from April 12. However, people may be urged to only go in alone rather than as an entire household.
Retailers will also be Allowed to open until 10 pm as the Government seeks to bolster the high street and ensure compliance with social distancing rules.
Pubs and restaurants can open again from the same date, but only outside, so pub gardens and outdoor dining will be back and everyone who visits will have to check in on the NHS’s Test and Trace app. Groups can gather, but with the same limits as above: either up to six people or two households.
There will be no curfews or any requirement to serve a meal with alcohol, removing the scotch egg sage of last year. Pubs will also be allowed to serve takeaway pints.
Pubs and restaurants will initially be exempt from Vaccine or test passport that will be required for people attending theatres, cinemas, nightclubs, sports matches and music festivals to show they are likely to be Covid-free.
However, government sources indicated ministers had not ruled out extending it to the hospitality sector later in the summer, despite serious concerns within the industry that it could stifle any revival. A source said: "We haven't ruled it out for pubs but anything we do in hospitality has to be in consultation with the industry. We will get all the data towards the end of May and we will see if it could play a role this Summer."
Pub bosses welcomed the return of the public, but are opposed to a passport scheme, and stressed that the industry’s Covid-secure measures will be enough to keep venues safe.
Mr Johnson told a press conference on Apr 5 that there is "no question" of people being asked to produce certificates when they go to the shops, hairdressers or pub garden on Apr 12. He added that this extends to the next step on May 17 at the earliest, when indoor hospitality reopens and people are expected to be able to start mixing again indoors. However, Mr Johnson said that the use of international vaccine passports is a certainty.
Staycations will also be allowed from Apr 12, but in a limited form. One household will be allowed to stay overnight somewhere in the UK, but not with another household.
‘Self-contained accommodation’ will be available to rent, so for example cottages or Airbnb rentals or campsites. However hotels and B&Bs cannot reopen. Hairdressers and nail salons will be allowed to open.
Outdoor hospitality venues like zoos and theme parks can also open from this date. The limit on the maximum number of attendees at weddings and wakes will also rise from six to 15.
There will be no change for funerals, to which 30 attendees are already allowed. Gyms can also open but you cannot attend with people outside of your household, because indoor socialising is barred at this point. Gym classes are not yet allowed.
From May 17, groups of up to six people and two households will be allowed to meet indoors, so people can enter each other's homes from now.
The Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, stated on Feb 23 that Loved ones maybe able to hug each other from mid-May, although people must remain "cautious" until this date.
Pubs and restaurants can open indoors. It is unlikely there will be strict requirements on capacity, but it must be table service.
However, Matt Hancock was ordered to the High Court on April 6 to justify why non-essential shops will be allowed to open before indoor pub and restaurants spaces. A judge ordered that the Health Secretary provide a response by April 19, after the legal action was brought by nightclubs operator Sacha Lord and former Pizza Express boss Hugh Osmond.
Hotels and B&Bs can open in step three, as can indoor sports and gym classes.
Entertainment venues can open too including cinemas and theatres. New rules will be in place for different sizes of venues.
Normal outdoor events can open for up to 4,000 people or 50 per cent of the venue capacity, whichever is smaller.
Similarly normal indoor events can open for up to 1,000 people or 50 per cent capacity, again whichever is lower.
For huge outdoor seated venues there is a special limit. Up to 10,000 attendees will be allowed or 25 per cent capacity, whichever is lower.
This means, for example, Wembley Stadium will be able to open with 10,000 fans attending.
The Prime Minister confirmed a traffic light system to replace the current blanket ban on non-essential foreign travel, with countries classed red, amber or green.
However, Mr Johnson warned Britons not to book summer holidays as the ban on foreign travel may not be lifted on May 17, because of the risk of importing Covid variants.
Mr Johnson's review of global travel, published on April 5, said it was hoped it would be possible for people to take a summer holiday overseas this year but warned that it was "still too soon to know what is possible".
The review confirmed that the ban, when lifted, will be replaced by a traffic light system in which quarantine at home will be scrapped for "green" countries and replaced by tests that holidaymakers will have to pay for pre-departure and on arrival back in the UK. Quarantine remains for "amber" and "red" countries.
Holidaymakers will only be able to return if they have a negative test within 72 hours of departure and will also be required to have at least one test after arrival in England.
Weddings, receptions, wakes, funerals, and other life events like Bar mitzvahs and christenings will be allowed to be attended by up to 30 people.
This will be as close to normal as possible.
There will be no attendance limits on weddings and funerals.
Big venues that were unable to open last year, such as nightclubs, can finally reopen.
Oliver Dowden the Culture Secretary, said that coronavirus "certificates", were being considered as a way of getting people back to larger events "in significant numbers" from Jun 21.
Many of the details for what can happen now is dependent on a number of reviews.
Four reviews
There are four reviews that have been commissioned that sit below the roadmap. They are designed to find answers that right now the Government feels it cannot give.
Each has a ‘complete by now’ date, meaning we know when to expect clarity but not what the review will decide or if it will lead to a change in the rules.
One review is looking at international travel. The review, published on Apr 5, said it was hoped it would be possible for people to take a summer holiday overseas this year but warned that it was "still too soon to know what is possible".
The reopening of foreign travel could be delayed beyond the middle of May.
New regulations that passed with the review of coronavirus restrictions on Mar 25 include a provision to ban leaving the United Kingdom "without a reasonable excuse", meaning those leaving the UK without a valid reason could face a £5,000 fine.
Exemptions include work, volunteering, studying, elite sports, legal obligations, medical reasons, care and assistance to vulnerable person, wedding of a close family member - but not going on holiday. This policy came into force in the week of Mar 28.
A second review will look at social distancing measures. These include the keeping of two metres apart outside (or ‘one metre-plus’ inside), wearing face masks and being encouraged to work from home.
That review is due to report back before stage four, which is Jun 17. In other words, do not expect to be told to go back to work in an office until the summer at the earliest.
A third review will look at Covid vaccine certificates being used domestically. This is interesting as Government ministers had previously played down that possibility.
Boris Johnson denied on Apr 5 that the principle of Covid status checks was “un-British”, pointing to surgeons who have to undergo hepatitis-B jabs before being allowed to operate.
The Telegraph understands that Covid passport checks could be introduced at theatres, football matches, business conferences, wedding venues and even some workplaces.
But Covid passports might not be ready until the autumn , The Telegraph revealed on Apr 3.
The fourth review will look at large events. It will attempt to work out when it is safe for large events to be held again. It too will report back by step four, so Jun 17.
Pilots for big outdoor events will be allowed to take place in April.
