Schools will be required to provide remote education for those learning at home.Įarly years settings such as nurseries, alternative provision and special schools will remain open and vulnerable children and children of critical workers can continue to use registered childcare, childminders and other childcare activities. While children are still very unlikely to be severely affected by COVID-19, the government recognises that schools must be included in the restrictions in order to have the best chance of getting the virus under control as schools can act as vectors of transmission, causing the virus to spread between households when rates are high. attend education or childcare - for those eligible.įrom tomorrow, all primary schools, secondary schools and colleges will move to remote learning, except for the children of key workers and vulnerable children.seek medical assistance or avoid injury, illness or risk of harm (including domestic abuse).meet your support bubble or childcare bubble where necessary, but only if you are legally permitted to form one.exercise with your household (or support bubble) or one other person, this should be limited to once per day, and you should not travel outside your local area.go to work, or provide voluntary or charitable services, if you cannot reasonably do so from home.shop for basic necessities, for you or a vulnerable person.Despite this, the pressure on our NHS, rapidly rising infection rates and hospital admissions due to the new variant mean that another national lockdown is sadly necessary.įrom tomorrow, people will only be allowed to leave their homes for the following reasons:

The Prime Minister praised everyone’s collective efforts to get this virus under control, emphasising the great national effort to fight Covid.

This afternoon, the four UK Chief Medical Officers have advised that the COVID threat level should move from level four to level five, indicating that if action is not taken NHS capacity may be overwhelmed within 21 days. On 3 Jan, 454 deaths were reported, with 4,228 over the last 7 days – a 24% increase on the previous 7 days. The case rate in England up to 29 December was 478.5 per 100k, three times higher than on 1 December when the case rate was 151.3.

On 4 January, there were 26,626 Covid patients in hospital in England, an increase of over 30% in one week, and the April 2020 hospital admissions peak has now been surpassed by 40%. This drastic jump in cases has been attributed to the new variant of COVID-19, which our scientists have now confirmed is between 50 and 70 per cent more transmissible. The decision follows a rapid rise in infections, hospital admissions and case rates across the country, and our hospitals are now under more pressure than they have been at any other point throughout the pandemic. The Prime Minister has announced a national lockdown and instructed people to stay at home to control the virus, protect the NHS and save lives.

2021 lockdown