Wiltshire confirmed to remain in Tier 2 'high' category

The Wiltshire Council local authority area has been confirmed as remaining in the COVID-19 Tier 2 'high' category, following a review by the Government.

This means that the existing restrictions remain in place. These include:

• People must not socialise with anyone they do not live with or who is not in their support bubble in any indoor setting, whether at home or in a public place.
• People must also not socialise in a group of more than six people outside, including in a garden or public space.
• Businesses and venues can remain open in a COVID secure manner, other than those that are closed by law.
• Pubs and bars may not provide alcohol for consumption on the premises, unless with a substantial meal, so they are operating as a restaurant. They may remain open for takeaway services.
• Hospitality businesses selling food or drink for consumption on their premises are required to provide table service only. In premises that sell alcohol, they need to close between 11pm and 5am with some exemptions, and stop taking orders after 10pm.
• Hospitality venues that do not serve alcohol may allow someone to order from the counter, but they must still consume their meal from a seat if eating in.
• Education settings remain open.
• Council services, such as leisure centres and libraries, will remain open.
• Weddings and funerals can go ahead with restrictions on numbers of attendees - 15 people can attend wedding ceremonies and receptions, 30 people can attend funeral ceremonies, and 15 people can attend linked commemorative events.
• Outdoor street markets will continue to sell full range of items.
• Household Recycling Centres will remain open.
• Places of worship remain open, but people must not attend or socialise in groups of more than six people while there, unless there's a legal exemption.

More information the Tier 2 restrictions can be found at GOV.UK: Guidance Tier 2: High alert (opens new window) page.

Cllr Philip Whitehead, Leader of Wiltshire Council, said: "Thanks to everyone's efforts, the COVID-19 case numbers in Wiltshire have been heading in the right direction over the last few weeks, and remaining in Tier 2 gives us the opportunity to maintain that progress.

"Christmas will be a crucial time and we really want to avoid a surge in cases come the new year, so we ask people to be as sensible as they can and that will put us in good stead as we head towards a more hopeful and brighter 2021."

For the latest information on COVID-19 and all the support available, and more information on the Tiers, people should visit our  COVID-19 page.

Yesterday (16 December) the Government confirmed that the Christmas bubble regulations will remain.

The Government has said that three households can still mix from 23 to 27 December regardless of tier, but it wants people to:

• think carefully about who is part of their bubble
• limit the amount of people they see in the lead up to, and during. the Christmas period
• be very mindful of seeing anyone particularly vulnerable
• try and limit travel from an area with a high prevalence of COVID-19 to an area of low prevalence
• avoid overnight stays where possible
• avoid crowds
• not gather in groups over the New Year

More information can be found on the Government's Christmas bubble guidance (opens new window) page.