 Safety first approach as more of Manchester reopens
We are delighted to be welcoming more people and businesses back to Manchester from Saturday 4 July, and although we’ve embraced the relaxation of the COVID-19 restrictions, a safety first approach is needed as any complacency will jeopardise our COVID-19 recovery.
So if you are returning to work, shopping or visiting the city from this Saturday, please observe social distancing and don’t get too close to people outside of your household or support bubble.
Please wash your hands regularly, where available use hand sanitisers upon entering and exiting a building, or when you have hand contact with surfaces. Also avoid touching your face and wear a face covering where appropriate.
Over the last few weeks we have been delighted to see so many people, businesses and organisations sharing our virtual hug and welcome back, Manchester message, so nice one.
We will update this message as more of our city’s friends return and the spirit and character of Manchester shines through on the journey ahead.
Stay safe and welcome back, Manchester.
Here is the latest information
Walk this way! Help to stay safe in Manchester
As more businesses reopen in the city from this Saturday (4 July), we are putting safety first with extra signage in place in high footfall areas such as Market Street to remind people to observe social distancing and to help prevent the spread of the virus.
A team of uniformed and highly visible street marshals will work across the city centre who are experienced in crowd management and can deal with any potential crowding issues quickly and efficiently.
Pavements in the city centre and in local district centres have been widened around transport hubs to help people socially distance more effectively as more people return to their place of work.
A list of streets that will be subject to Temporary Traffic Regulation Orders to allow people the distance to safely navigate through the city centre and to minimise pedestrian pinch points is below:
- Blossom Street
- Bridge Street
- Corn Exchange
- Dorsey Street
- Edge Street
- Great Northern
- King Street
- Short Street
- The Village/Gay Village
- Thomas Street
- Wakefield Street/James Leigh Street
|
Stephenson Square Pedestrianisation from 3 July 2020
From Friday 3 July, Stevenson Square and part of Ducie Street will become a pedestrian and cycle-only zone seven days a week until further notice, to allow pedestrians to socially distance instead of gathering in groups at traffic lights, while also preventing queuing vehicles from blocking trams and buses.
Ducie Street near Manchester Piccadilly station will be closed off between London Road and Dale Street. Withy Grove will also become a one-way route to provide more space.
Buses that usually pass through Stevenson Square will be diverted along Lever Street to Great Ancoats Street and into Oldham Street.
Vehicles will be able to access Dale Street via Great Ancoats Street.
Temporary traffic-free zones are already in place in the Northern Quarter on Thomas Street, and also in Deansgate.
Long-held plans to pedestrianise Stevenson Square have not been ruled out, with more than half of respondents to favouring the move in a consultation on walking and cycling in the Northern Quarter
But no permanent changes will be considered until feedback on the temporary closures has been reviewed. Local residents, businesses and people who work and travel in the area can comment on the temporary changes by emailing nqwalkingandcycling@manchester.gov.uk
Who would YOU want to keep safe?
A personal plea from city’s health chiefs for 14-day isolation rules for Covid contact tracing
As lockdown gradually lifts it is now even more important that people who think they may have coronavirus, stay at home and book themselves a test as soon as possible.
It’s also vitally important that anyone who gets a call from the test and trace team - to say that they have been near a person who has tested positive - follows the rules around self-isolating for two weeks. (See our Q and A for more details).
And, while the thought of another two weeks could be a daunting prospect, the city’s public health chiefs want to give their own personal thoughts on why it’s critical.
Sarah Doran, Consultant in Public Health, leading on Manchester’s response to Covid and contact tracing, said: “I have friends and colleagues who have lost loved ones to Covid-19, and I’ve wept for them all. And that’s because I’m not just a consultant in public health. I’m a mother, wife, daughter, friend and colleague. My Mum is over 70 and has asthma and breathing problems. I also have friends and colleagues with black, Asian and other minority group heritage who are more at risk of the disease.
“I would self-isolate if I was a contact, not just for the people I love, but for the people others love too.” You can see Sarah’s film here.
 New Opening hours for Manchester Community Response Hub
The opening hours for Manchester’s COVID-19 Community Response Hub are changing from Monday 6 July it will be open Mon-Fri 9am-5pm and Sat 10am-2pm.
If you need help freephone: 0800 234 6123 email: COVIDSupport@manchester.gov.uk or text: 078600 22876 (messages responded to by the next working day) or visit manchester.gov.uk/coronavirus
You can read Manchester's plans to keep the city safe and how we would deal with any local Covid outbreaks on our website.
Help with Debt, Bills and Borrowing
If you are not working or furloughed at the moment due to COVID-19 and need help with debt, bills or borrowing, visit www.manchester.gov.uk/helpinghands for advice and support.
|
Phased reopening of Manchester's libraries to begin on 4 July
A phased process of safely welcoming residents back to their local libraries will begin on Saturday 4 July.
Eight of the city’s libraries – including City Library, on the lower ground floor of Manchester Central Library – will be open to all users on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, 11am–3pm. Children aged 12 and under must be accompanied by a parent, carer or older sibling.
The eight libraries that are reopening at this stage are Chorlton Library, City Library (at Central Library), Didsbury Library, Gorton Library, Longsight Library, Newton Heath Library, Withington Library and Wythenshawe Forum Library.
Read more about these libraries reopening.
Summer of activity and support for Manchester’s young people
A bespoke programme of summer activities in the city is being planned to address the negative impact that being out of school and away from their friends is known to have had on the city's 87,000 school aged children and young people.
The council is talking to schools, youth providers, parents, young people, funding agencies and businesses about how to make these plans happen.
The council is also looking at ways of addressing holiday hunger for the city's 28,000 children who are currently eligible for a free school meal, as part of the overall activities package. Read more about summer activities and addressing holiday hunger.
Tips and recycling centres
Manchester’s three recycling centres are now open seven days a week from 8am to 6pm.
They are as below, click the links to check traffic before you set off:
Please only visit if it is essential.
Full details are on the Recycle for Greater Manchester website, including health and safety guidance and what items can be taken. You can follow @recycle4gm on twitter for updates.
 Water safety
Many of Manchester’s city centre bars and restaurants are reopening this weekend. Please be careful around the waterways and remember these key safety messages:
- Plan your journey home before you go out
- Look out for each other when you’ve had a few drinks and make sure you walk home with friends
- Don’t walk home alongside the water after drinking. Find a better route home
- Don't ever be tempted to cool off by jumping in canals or rivers – cold water shock can kill in less than a minute?
More information is available from the Manchester Water Safety Partnership.
 Manchester Adult Education - learn online
Due to the lockdown we are not currently able to hold our adult education courses in our buildings, but you can still learn from the comfort of your own home.
Online learning allows you to gain qualifications and skills, when it suits you and around your other responsibilities.
Find out more.
 Relaxing of COVID-19 guidance from Sat 4 July 2020
Staying Safe outside your home in England (if local restrictions are not in place)
Keep your distance from people outside your household
The risk of infection is higher the closer you are to another person with the virus, and the amount of time you spend in close contact with them. The government recommends keeping two metres away from people as a precaution or one metre when you can mitigate the risk by taking other precautions listed below.
Avoid being face-to-face with people if they are outside your household or support bubble
You are at higher risk of being directly exposed to respiratory droplets (released by talking or coughing) when you are within two metres of someone and have face-to-face contact with them. You can lower the risk of infection if you stay side-to-side rather than facing someone. The key thing is not to be too close to people outside your household or support bubble. If you must, keep it as brief as possible.
Keep your hands and face as clean as possible:
- Wash your hands often using soap and water, and dry them thoroughly.
- Where available, use sanitiser outside your home, especially as you enter a building and after you have had contact with surfaces. Avoid touching your face.
Keep indoor places well ventilated
The virus is less likely to be passed on outdoors and in well-ventilated buildings.
In good weather, try to leave windows and doors open in areas where people from different households come into contact, or move activity outdoors if you can.
Use external extractor fans to keep spaces well ventilated and make sure that ventilation systems are set to maximise the air flow rate.
Heating and cooling systems can be used at their normal temperature settings.
Avoid crowded spaces
You can lower the risks of transmission by reducing the number of people you come into close contact with. For example, avoid peak travel times on public transport, where possible and avoid densely crowded areas. Small groups in small spaces pose a risk as well as large, close crowds.
Businesses should also take reasonable steps to avoid people being gathered together. For example, by reducing density in meeting rooms and social spaces, allowing the use of more entrances and exits, and staggering entrance and exit points and work shifts, where possible.
 Work from home if you can
If you can do your job from home you should continue to do so, but you and your employer should discuss and agree working arrangements to best suit the needs of the business.
If you have to travel (for example, to work or school), think about how and when you travel
Try to walk or cycle wherever possible. If you have to use public transport, try to avoid peak times. Employers should consider staggering working hours, expanding bicycle storage facilities, providing changing facilities and providing car parking.
Face coverings
You must wear a face covering at all times on public transport or when attending a hospital as a visitor or outpatient.
Hospitals will be able to provide a face covering in emergencies. If you can, you should also wear a face covering in other enclosed public spaces where social distancing isn’t possible and where you will come into contact with people you do not normally meet.
This is most relevant for short periods indoors in crowded areas. You should be prepared to remove your face covering if asked to do so by police officers and staff for the purposes of identification.
Face coverings do not replace social distancing. If you have symptoms of COVID-19 (cough, and/or high temperature, and/or loss of, or change in, your normal sense of smell or taste - anosmia), you and your household must isolate at home: wearing a face covering does not change this. You should arrange to have a test to see if you have COVID-19.
Face coverings should not be used by children under the age of 3 or those who may find it difficult to manage them correctly.
It is important to use face coverings properly and wash your hands before putting them on and taking them off.
You can make face-coverings at home. The key thing is it should cover the mouth and nose.
|
Avoid shouting or singing close to people outside your household or support bubble
There is some evidence to suggest that shouting and singing increase the amount of respiratory droplets and aerosols people release and therefore the risk of transmission between people if they are doing either in close proximity to those outside their household.
You should avoid doing either with people outside your household or social bubble.
Reduce the number of people you spend time with in a work setting
You can lower the risks of transmission in the workplace by reducing the number of people you come into contact with regularly, where you can. Your employer can support with this (where practical) by:
-
changing shift patterns and rotas to match you with the same team each time
-
splitting people into smaller, contained teams
Wash your clothes regularly
There is some evidence that the virus can stay on fabrics for a few days, although usually it is shorter. Therefore, if you are working with people outside your household, wash your clothes regularly. Changing clothes in workplaces should only be considered where there is a high risk of infection or there are highly vulnerable people, such as in a care home. If you need to change your clothes, avoid crowding into a changing room.
When at work or in business or public premises, follow the advice on site
Employers, business owners and organisations have a duty to assess and manage risks to your safety in the workplace and on their premises. The government has issued guidance for employers and businesses on coronavirus. This includes guidance on how to make adjustments to help you maintain social distancing.
It also includes guidance on hygiene, as evidence suggests that the virus can exist for up to 72 hours on surfaces. Therefore, frequent cleaning is particularly important for communal surfaces like:
- door handles
- lift buttons
- communal areas like bathrooms
- kitchens
- tea points
You can see the guidance for employers and businesses on coronavirus on gov.uk and can ask your employer if you have questions. View advice about shopping safely on our YouTube page.
Social Distancing advice for England from 4 July 2020
On 23 June 2020, the government continued to ease COVID-19 restrictions, so from the 4 July:
- you can meet in groups of up to two households (your support bubble counts as one household) in any location - public or private, indoors or outdoors. You do not always have to meet with the same household - you can meet with different households at different times. However, it remains the case - even inside someone’s home - that you should socially distance from anyone not in your household or bubble. This change also does not affect the support you receive from your carers. Guidance on how to see your friends and family safely can be found here.
- when you are outside you can continue to meet in groups of up to six people from different households, following social distancing guidelines
- those who have been able to form a support bubble (i.e. those in single adult households) can continue to have close contact as if they live with the other people in the bubble, but you should not change who you have formed a support bubble with
- additional businesses and venues, including restaurants, pubs, cinemas, visitor attractions, hotels, and campsites will be able to open - but we will continue to keep closed certain premises where the risks of transmission may be higher
- other public places, such as libraries, community centres, places of worship, outdoor playgrounds and outdoor gyms will be able to open
- you can stay overnight away from your home with your own household or support bubble, or with members of one other household (where you need to keep social distancing). Guidance on how to see your friends and family safely can be found here.
- it will be against the law to gather in groups larger than 30 people, except for a limited set of circumstances to be set out in law and unless all members of the group are exclusively from two households. Police will have the power to break up groups larger than 30, apart from these exceptions.
For more information about what you should and should not do during the coronavirus outbreak visit the governments FAQs page.
 Clinically vulnerable people in England
If you have any of the following health conditions, you may be clinically vulnerable, meaning you could be at higher risk of severe illness from coronavirus. Although you can meet people outdoors and, from 4 July, indoors, you should be especially careful and be diligent about social distancing and hand hygiene.Clinically vulnerable people are those who are:
- aged 70 or older (regardless of medical conditions)
- under 70 with an underlying health condition listed below (that is, anyone instructed to get a flu jab each year on medical grounds):
- chronic (long-term) mild to moderate respiratory diseases, such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), emphysema or bronchitis
- chronic heart disease, such as heart failure
- chronic kidney disease
- chronic liver disease, such as hepatitis
- chronic neurological conditions, such as Parkinson’s disease, motor neurone disease, multiple sclerosis (MS), or cerebral palsy
- diabetes
- a weakened immune system as the result of certain conditions or medicines they are taking (such as steroid tablets)
- being seriously overweight (a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or above)
- pregnant women
 There is a further group of people who are defined, also on medical grounds, as clinically extremely vulnerable to coronavirus – that is, people with specific serious health conditions - and who have been advised to ‘shield’. We are relaxing advice to those shielding in two stages - as long as the incidence rate in the community remains low:
From 6 July:
- those shielding can spend time outdoors in a group of up to 6 people (including those outside of their household). Extra care should be taken to minimise contact with others by maintaining social distancing. This can be in a public outdoor space, or in a private garden or uncovered yard or terrace
- those shielding no longer need to observe social distancing with other members of their household
- those who are shielding will be able to create a ‘support bubble’ with one other household, as long as one of the households in the bubble is a single adult household (either an adult living alone or with dependent children under 18). All those in a support bubble can spend time together inside each others’ homes, including overnight, without needing to maintain social distancing. This follows the same rules on support bubbles that apply to the wider population now
From 1 August advice for clinically extremely vulnerable people will move in line with advice to those who are clinically vulnerable. This means staying at home as much as possible, and if people do go out, taking particular care to minimise contact with others outside their household (unless you are in a support bubble) and robustly practising good, frequent hand washing.
The relaxation of the shielding guidance will mean people who are clinically extremely vulnerable will be advised they can go to work or to the shops, as long as they are able to maintain social distancing as much as possible and their workplace is COVID-19 Secure.
Support for those shielding will continue to the end of July so that people can plan for these changes.
For more information about COVID-19 guidance, visit GOV.UK
Helpful links:
|
