The Prime Minister has confirmed that from Thursday 5 November until Wednesday 2 December, England will be in lockdown. This means there are new restrictions and guidelines for Essex residents and businesses to follow.
From Thursday 5 November:
- People must stay at home as much as possible except for education purposes; for work if you cannot work from home; for exercise and recreation outdoors; for medical reasons; to shop for food and essentials; to care for others
- Non-essential shops will be closed
- Hospitality venues will be closed, but takeaways can remain open
- Support bubbles will still be allowed which means a single person household can meet and socialise with another household. Children will be able to move homes if their parents are separated
- Schools, colleges and universities will remain open
The government has also announced that it will extend its furlough scheme throughout November to support businesses.
GOV.UK has guidance on the new national restrictions.
Essex County Council has outlined details of their plans for continued provision of key services across the county during this period. They have also made available extra funding for the most vulnerable this winter.
The One Colchester partnership is also making extra support available in their area.
Dr David Edwards, Consultant in Health Protection at Public Health England East, said:
“We know that entering another phase of lockdown is not easy for people and we thank our communities in the east of England for all their efforts so far, however, in order to slow down and prevent transmission of this virus as best as we can, the stricter restrictions are needed at this time.
“Like everywhere else in England, here in the East we have seen cases rising rapidly over the past few weeks, with a lot of areas now tipping over 100 cases per 100,000 people, especially in the more densely populated areas. We want to reverse this trend and see our case numbers dropping.
“We know it is challenging but sticking to the advice and playing our part is the best way to fight this virus; together, working towards preventing transmission and protecting those around us.”
You can view all the latest statistics and information about COVID-19 cases in Essex here.