On Saturday October 31st, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that the UK would be taken into a second lockdown, which came into effect on November 5th.
The lockdown will remain until December 2nd and pubs, restaurants and non-essential shops have closed their doors and members of the public have been told to stay at home for the next four weeks in a bid to reverse the spread of Covid-19.
The new lockdown rules are as follows:
- No mixing of households indoors or in private gardens, unless in your support bubble
- Pubs and restaurants to close but takeaways are permitted
- Individuals can meet one person from outside their household in an outdoor environment
- Non-essential shops, leisure facilities including gyms and entertainment venues will shut
- People encouraged to stay at home and only leave for specific reasons, including education and work
- Domestic and foreign travel is permitted for work and education purposes only
- Schools, universities and colleges to remain OPEN
As a result of this announcement, Chancellor Rishi Sunak confirmed the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, in which the government pays up to 80% of a person’s wages up to £2,500 per month, will be extended until March 2021 and would apply throughout the UK.
As part of the revised scheme, anyone who is made redundant after September 23rd can be and put back on furlough if they find new employment.
Mr Sunak also announced support for self-employed individuals through the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) would be increased from to 80% of average trading profits, up to a maximum of £7,500 until January 2021.
Businesses in England that are forced to close due to the lockdown restrictions will receive up to £3,000 per month.
Local Authorities in England will also receive one-off funding of over a billion pounds to support businesses over the coming months as a key part of local economies.
How will the new lockdown impact healthcare businesses?
It goes without saying that domiciliary agencies and residential care homes will remain open for business and care home residents will still be allowed to receive visits from family and friends.
According to new guidance published by the Government on November 4th, care homes will be encouraged to maintain ‘safe visiting opportunities’ during the lockdown.
However, visits will have to comply with ‘Covid-safe’ guidelines, including social distancing and the use of personal protective equipment (PPE).
If you would like more information on how business have been affected, watch our webinar with Professor Martin Green, CEO of Care England. The webinar can be found here: https://redwoodsdk.com/2020/10/29/rdk-healthcare-webinar-interview-with-professor-martin-green-rdk/
We are now able to offer both face to face and virtual video appointments to comply with social distancing guidelines which can be conducted via a secure, confidential video conferencing facility and we can update you on the current market and option available to you. Please feel free to contact us to discuss your business in confidence.
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