COVID-19 Updates

Latest COVID-19 news

Governments Living with Covid Strategy 

From 21 February the Government is:

Removing the guidance for staff and students in most education and childcare settings to undertake twice weekly asymptomatic testing.

From 24 February the Government will:

• Remove the legal requirement to self-isolate following a positive test. Adults and children who test positive will continue to be advised to stay at home and avoid contact with other people for at least 5 full days and then continue to follow the guidance until they have received 2 negative test results on consecutive days.
• No longer ask fully vaccinated close contacts and those aged under 18 to test daily for 7 days, and remove the legal requirement for close contacts who are not fully vaccinated to self-isolate.
• End self-isolation support payments, national funding for practical support and the medicine delivery service will no longer be available.
• End routine contact tracing. Contacts will no longer be required to self-isolate or advised to take daily tests.
• End the legal obligation for individuals to tell their employers when they are required to self-isolate.
• Revoke The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) (No. 3) Regulations.

From 24 March, the Government will:

• Remove the COVID-19 provisions within the Statutory Sick Pay and Employment and Support Allowance regulations.

From 1 April, the Government will:

• Remove the current guidance on voluntary COVID-status certification in domestic settings and no longer recommend that certain venues use the NHS COVID Pass.
• Update guidance setting out the ongoing steps that people with COVID-19 should take to minimise contact with other people. This will align with the changes to testing.
• No longer provide free universal symptomatic and asymptomatic testing for the general public in England.
• Consolidate guidance to the public and businesses, in line with public health advice.
• Remove the health and safety requirement for every employer to explicitly consider COVID-19 in their risk assessments.
• Replace the existing set of ‘Working Safely’ guidance with new public health guidance.

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