The Prime Minister has announced an end to all remaining Covid restrictions in England, including the legal requirement to self-isolate.
In its place, the government has put forward a Living with Covid Plan .
The changes will not automatically apply across the rest of the UK unless the other nations choose to adopt them.
From 21 February:
staff and students in most education and childcare settings without symptoms no longer have to test twice weekly
From 24 February:
- people with Covid will no longer be legally required to self-isolate
- guidance will remain in place for those who test positive to stay at home and avoid contact with others for at least five full days
- self-isolation support payments of £500 for those on low incomes will no longer be available
- routine contact tracing will end – people in contact with someone with Covid will no longer be advised to self-isolate or take daily tests
- workers will no longer be required to tell their employer if they need to self-isolate
From 1 April:
- Covid tests will no longer be free for most people
- the use of Covid passports will no longer be recommended, except for international travel
- employers will no longer have to consider Covid as a separate risk when working out how to keep employees safe
For the latest infomation see GOV.UK.
Guidance on how to stay safe and avoid the spread of Coronavirus has been updated and is available here. If you were previously identified as Clinically Extremely Vulnerable the government says you you should continue to follow their guidance and take advice from your health professional on whether additional precautions are right for you.
Disability Rights UK ( DRUK ) Head of Policy Fazilet Hadi said:
“There is still a small but significant number of Disabled people for whom Covid will remain a potential death sentence. At the beginning of the pandemic, we were hopeful that a Government that could implement such rapid protection measures for the whole of society would learn from lived experience what it is like to live with the real and present threat of death or serious illness from Covid, and would continue to maintain such protections for those who would continue to need them. The wholesale removal of restrictions without consideration of those still at risk is genuinely horrifying. Clinically Extremely Vulnerable people should still be able to shield as necessary, and as part of shielding, be able to access food and medicines safely, and be entitled to employment protection and financial support.”
View DRUK’s full response here.
Inclusion North has produced this information in Easy Read.
