Bolton: local restrictions update

An outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19) has been identified in Bolton. The government and the relevant local authorities are working together to control the spread of the virus.

Restrictions and guidance apply to the specified areas below.

Affected local areas

• Bolton (Metropolitan Borough Council)

Local restrictions

Business and venue closures and restrictions

The following businesses and venues must not open in Bolton:

• casinos
• skating rinks
• bowling alleys
• indoor play areas, including soft play areas
• exhibition centres and conference halls for external attendees

We advise that the following settings and activities should not reopen or restart in Bolton:

• indoor performances
• close contact services, which are any treatments on the face such as eyebrow threading or make-up application

Hospitality venues must only provide take away food and drinks or delivery services to customers. Hospitality venues include:

• restaurants, including hotel dining rooms and members’ clubs
• cafes including workplace canteens (not including cafes or canteens at hospitals, care homes, schools, prisons, establishments intended for the use of naval, military or air force purposes and for providing food or drink to the homeless)
• bars including bars in hotels or members’ clubs
• pubs

The following businesses and venues must close from 10pm to 5am each day:

• venues listed above (now only operating as takeaways)
• cinemas
• theatres
• bingo halls
• concert halls
• museums and galleries
• betting shops
• nail bars and salons, hair salons and barbers
• tanning booths and salons
• spas and beauty salons
• massage parlours
• tattoo and piercing parlours
• amusement arcades or other indoor leisure centres or facilities
• funfairs (indoors or outdoors), theme parks and adventure parks and activities
• playgrounds
• social clubs
• aquariums and zoos, including safari parks
• indoor attractions at visitor attractions

The local authority in Bolton and national regulators, including the Health and Safety Executive, will be undertaking stronger enforcement to ensure workplaces are COVID-19 secure and that the required businesses and venues close from 10pm to 5am each day.

Social contact restrictions

If you live in Bolton, you must not:

• host people you do not live with in your home or garden, unless they’re in your support bubble
• meet people you do not live with in their home or garden, whether inside or outside of Bolton, unless they’re in your support bubble

Your household is only the people you live with and any support bubble.

A support bubble is where a household with one adult joins with another household (on an exclusive basis). Households within a bubble can still visit each other, stay overnight, and visit public places together.

The police are able to take action against those that break these rules, including asking people to disperse and issuing fixed penalty notices starting at £100 for those who participate in illegal gatherings.

People aged 18 or over can be fined:

• £100 for the first offence, lowered to £50 if paid within 14 days
• £200 for the second offence, then doubling for each further offence up to a maximum of £3,200

The government has also introduced fines for those who hold illegal gatherings of over 30 people. Holding or being involved in the holding of an illegal gathering of more than 30 people is an offence, and Police may issue fines of £10,000 to those who break the law.

People can still come inside your home or garden for specific purposes set out in law:

• where everyone in the gathering lives together or is in the same support bubble
• to attend a birth at the mother’s request
• to visit a person who is dying (the visitor can be someone the dying person lives with, a close family member, friend or, if none of those is visiting, anyone else)
• to fulfil a legal obligation
• for work purposes (see guidance on working safely in other people’s homes), or for the provision of voluntary or charitable services
• for the purposes of education or training
• for the purposes of childcare provided by a registered provider
• to provide emergency assistance
• to enable one or more persons in the gathering to avoid injury or illness or to escape a risk of harm
• to facilitate a house move
• to provide care or assistance to a vulnerable person
• to continue existing arrangements for access to, and contact between, parents and children where the children do not live in the same household as their parents, or one of their parents.

From Monday 14 September, when meeting friends and family you do not live with (or have formed a support bubble with) you must not meet in a group of more than 6. Further detail can be found in the guidance for meeting others safely, including associated exemptions. In Bolton, you must not meet or host people you do not live with in private homes or gardens unless they are in your support bubble. In addition to these restrictions, we advise that you should not:

• socialise with people you do not live with, unless they’re in your support bubble, in any public venue. This applies to inside and outside of Bolton. Examples of public venues include pubs, restaurants, cafes, shops, places of worship, community centres, leisure and entertainment venues, or visitor attractions.
• visit friends or family in care homes, other than in exceptional circumstances. Care homes should restrict visits to these circumstances

If you operate a business or organise events within Bolton you should take steps to ensure people do not socialise with people they do not live with, in line with COVID-19 Secure guidance.

Travel restrictions

You should follow all relevant transport guidance when making a journey into, within or out of Bolton.

You must wear a face covering on public transport and in substantially enclosed areas of transport hubs in England (as well as in a range of other indoor premises). You will be breaking the law if you fail to do so and could be fined. Some people don’t have to wear a face covering including for age, health, or disability reasons.

You should try not to share a car with those outside your household or support bubble. If you need to, try to:

• share the car with the same people each time
• keep to small groups of people at any one time
• open windows for ventilation
• travel side by side or behind other people, rather than facing them, where seating arrangements allow
• consider seating arrangements to maximise distance between people in the vehicle
• clean your car between journeys using standard cleaning products – make sure you clean door handles and other areas that people may touch
• ask the driver and passengers to wear a face covering
• See more guidance on car sharing and travelling with people outside your household group.

You should only use public transport for essential reasons. For example:

• to get to and from work
• to get essential food or medical supplies including click and collect services
• to support someone who is vulnerable, if no-one else can do so
• to travel to and from the homes of others in your support bubble
• to attend an Early Years setting, school or college, or to accompany a child who is attending an Early Years setting, school, college or university where necessary
• To fulfil legal obligations
• To seek medical care, or avoid illness, injury or harm

If you live in Bolton you can travel outside the area. However, you must not meet people you do not live with in their home or garden, whether inside or outside of Bolton, unless they’re in your support bubble. You can still go on holiday outside of Bolton, but you should only do this with people you live with (or have formed a support bubble with).

There is separate guidance on what to do if you have booked holiday accommodation in an area with local restrictions.

Shielding

People who are clinically extremely vulnerable are not currently advised to shield.

Team sport and physical activity

You can play a team sport only where this is formally organised by a sports club or similar organisation, and sports-governing body guidance has been issued. A list of governing bodies which have had guidance reviewed can be found here. You can play individual sports in alignment with guidance here. We advise that all other sports activities should not take place with people who you do not live with at indoor and outdoor public venues.

Weddings and funerals

Weddings, civil partnership ceremonies and funerals (including ceremonies at crematoria) can still go ahead in these areas, but they should have no more than 6 people. This should be limited to close family of the people getting married or the person who has died, or people who live(d) or formed a support bubble with them. A close friend can attend a funeral only if there are no household members or immediate families.

These events should comply with the COVID-19 secure guidance and venue capacity. See detailed guidance for small marriages and civil partnerships.

People living outside of Bolton can travel to Bolton to attend a wedding, civil partnership ceremony or funeral, but must not meet with another household in a private home or garden.

Religious ceremonies and or places of worship

You may attend a mosque, church, synagogue, temple or other place or worship, but you should socially distance from people outside of your household. This means maintaining a distance of 2 metres, or 1 metre with mitigations (such as wearing face coverings).

If possible, prayer or religious services should take place outdoors.

Going to work

People living inside and outside of Bolton can continue to travel in and out for work. Workplaces should implement COVID-19 secure guidance.

The local authority in Bolton and national regulators (including HSE) will be undertaking stronger enforcement to ensure workplaces are COVID-19 Secure.

Financial support – furlough

Please see guidance on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.

Childcare

You can continue to use early years and childcare settings, including childminders and providers offering before or after school clubs or other out-of-school settings for children. You can also continue to employ nannies – see guidance on working safely in other people’s homes.

Friends or family who do not live with must not visit your home to help with childcare unless they are part of your support bubble. The only people who should help you with childcare in your home are people you live with, people in your support bubble, or registered childcare providers including nannies.

Children of parents who are separated can continue to move between households.

Schools (face coverings)

In education settings where pupils and students in Year 7 and above are educated, face coverings should be worn by staff, visitors and pupils/students when moving around in corridors and communal areas where social distancing is difficult to maintain. It is not necessary to wear face coverings in the classroom, where protective measures already mean the risks are lower and they may inhibit teaching and learning.

Moving home

People can move home. Estate and letting agents, and removals firms can continue to work and people looking to move home can continue to undertake viewings.