LONDON (CelebrityAccess) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that England is preparing to ease coronavirus restrictions, paving the way for the resumption of concerts and public events.
“It is my strong and sincere hope that we will be able to review the outstanding restrictions and allow a more significant return to normality from November at the earliest – possibly in time for Christmas,” he said.
As a part of England’s re-opening plan, live indoor concerts and theatrical events will be allowed to resume, provided the audience is socially distanced starting on August 1st.
On the same date, leisure settings, including bowling, skating rinks will also be allowed to open.
Starting in October, the UK government plans to allow fans to return to stadiums, as well as the resumption of conferences and business events, pending the results of a small number of pilot events.
The pilot events are expected to include two men’s county friendly matches – such as Surrey v Middlesex at The Oval on 26-27 July – the World Snooker Championship at Sheffield’s Crucible Theatre from 31 July, and the Glorious Goodwood horse racing festival on 1 August.
There are also likely to be additional pilot events for other sports, in order to build up to and prepare for the full, socially distanced return of sporting events from 1 October 2020.
The government’s current guidelines for social distancing guidance requires people to stay at least 1 meter apart with certain precautions.
As well, bookings for public mass gatherings ensure that social distancing is observed in seating arrangements, including minimizing the number of tickets sold to ensure that there is enough space.
Spectators need to be encouraged to avoid public transportation, including through parking facilities, bike and walking routes, and crowd management plans should be in place to control crowding at entrances and exits, including the use of staggered arrival and exit times as well as one way exits.
Additional hygiene facilities, such as hand washing and sanitizer stations, should be in place, and barriers for places where people cannot maintain social distancing such as catering and retail operations at events.