Please note: this article was correct at the time of writing and publication. However, please bear in mind that advice and guidance may change at short notice due to the nature of this unprecedented situation. We are doing our utmost to provide up to date information, as and when it happens.
For the latest, please visit www.ncass.org.uk/coronavirus
Yesterday lunch time the Prime Minister Boris Johnson made a Statement in Parliament to announce that lock-down measures can begin to be reduced further.
This is finally some positive news for our members who run pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels, as well as those mobile caterers who trade at markets, however, there has been no mention of the events and festival sector – We need more support for these members and will continue to share our position with government.
During his address, the PM outlined two key measures to support our sector; that all indoor and outdoor hospitality that are self-contained and can be accessed from the outside, including, restaurants, cafes, bars, pubs and workplace canteens would be allowed to open in some capacity on the 4th of July, and that the 2 metre distancing rule would be reduced from 2 metres down to 1 meter plus from that date.
Today, new guidance from BEIS has been released to support the safe re-opening and operating of these kinds of businesses. The guidance has been written in consultancy with businesses and associations from across the sector as part of the sector taskforce, which NCASS is an active part of, representing you; our members.
The new document sets out guidance on how to open workplaces safely while minimising the risk of spreading COVID-19. It gives practical considerations of how this can be applied in the workplace.
It is important that you translate this into the specific actions you need to take according to the nature of your business, including the size and type of business, how it is organised, operated, managed and regulated. You will also need to monitor these measures to make sure they continue to protect your customers and workers.
You should read the guidance thoroughly and carry out a Risk Assessment if you haven’t already done so. If you have access to the editable NCASS Covid-19 Risk Assessment, then you will need to amend the distancing levels from 2 to 1 metre plus. As well as this you will need to add in the additional hazards and control measures you are putting in place for your customers and your team with the new guidance in mind – you can add additional hazards using the editable sections of the Risk Assessment.
The guidance is split into sections and covers the steps that you should take in terms of:
This is an easy to read document that is key to operating safely. In addition to this, we recommend that you use the FSA’s re-opening checklist – after a period of closure, re-opening will require some extra checks alongside your ‘normal’ daily opening checks. These will help to make sure that your business can restart safely.
Other useful NCASS member resources can be found here
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