Latest guidance on local restrictions
Last week guidance on the Greater Manchester local restrictions were updated to reflect the changing rate of infection in Oldham and Wigan.
Restrictions continue to remain in place for the whole of Greater Manchester, which includes the official guidance that households should not meet in any indoor setting, including restaurants, bars, pubs, museums, and art galleries. Please see official guidance here.
Stricter rules are now in place for Oldham where people are asked not to meet anyone outside of their own household in any place, including parks, outdoor bars or restaurants, and are also asked to avoid using public transport unless for school or work. These new measures have been approved by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and the UK Government to reduce to spread of Coronavirus, where rates of infection have continued to rise in Oldham.
Due to a steep decline in cases, from today (Wednesday 26 August) Wigan has been excluded from the Greater Manchester lockdown and rules have been relaxed, bringing the borough in line with the rest of England. However, it should be noted that anyone from Wigan travelling into other parts of Greater Manchester must follow the guidelines of that area.
Face coverings are now required in a number of tourism, hospitality and leisure settings – a full list can be found on the UK Government website.
It is incredibly important we abide by these temporary rules, alongside social distancing and frequent handwashing to reduce the rate of infection in Greater Manchester, and to avoid further stringent measures.
The situation can change at any point, so we continue to ask our partners to stay vigilant, follow the rules and get in touch with our Tourism and Hospitality Support Hub team if you need support.
Supporting Test, Track and Trace – a guide for business
We’ve had some messages from our partners within the tourism, hospitality and leisure industries, expressing some confusion and concerns about business understanding of the Test, Track and Trace system.
In response to this we would like to share a link to the Business Growth Hub’s comprehensive guide which can be used to help businesses to navigate what can be a complex process. To access the guidance please click here.
Travel corridors guidance
We’ve also had requests from partners for further information about travel corridors following the announcement last week which removed Croatia, Trinidad & Tobago and Austria from the list of travel corridors for England.
Passengers returning from these countries are now required to self-isolate when returning from these countries. The full list of destinations that England does currently have travel corridors with can be found here, and now includes Portugal which was added to the list last week following a decrease in confirmed cases of coronavirus.
UK holidaymakers are advised that they may, at any time, find that they need to self-isolate on return to the UK if they travel abroad and advice changes. They are therefore advised to consider the implication of needing to self-isolate and only make travel plans if they have the means and resources to do so for two weeks upon returning to the UK.
Find Your Space campaign update
We’re delighted to let you know that since launching our Find Your Space campaign the website has received 74,000 page views and our #FindYourSpaceMCR social media content has generated 656,000 impressions on Twitter and 1.9 million impressions on Facebook.
The Find Your Space campaign was due to work in coordination with the government’s Enjoy Summer Safely Campaign. This however is temporarily being paused in Greater Manchester and will restart as soon as the local restrictions are lifted. .
We are continuously updating the content on these pages as well as our Manchester pages as usual, so if you have useful content or contributions please continue to send them to Ryan.Maley@marketingmanchester.com.
Partner news you should know about
Some welcome news from our partners that we think you should know about:
- Castlefield Gallery announces reopening date
- Octagon Theatre to open new theatre redevelopment
- People’s History Museum prepares to welcome visitors
- Alliance Manchester Business School to head up £32 million productivity institute
- Local expertise build Manchester’s new £8 million casino
- Bolton virtual food festival promises feast of tasty treats
Please email your news to press@marketingmanchester.com FAO of Andy Parkinson and also add this email address to your media/press distribution lists.
Tourism and Hospitality Support Hub
Throughout the COVID-19 crisis the Tourism and Hospitality Support Hub has been available to ensure that tourism and hospitality businesses are given the most up to date information including reopening standards and guidance. We have streamlined the Hub to give the most useful information; however, we will continue to deliver the service throughout the reopening of the visitor economy and anyone who needs specific and detailed support should contact supporthub@marketingmanchester.com for bespoke help and advice.
Latest Links
- Local restrictions
- Culture Recovery Fund
- Guidance on claiming wages for employers claiming for 100+ employees
- What happens if someone contracts Coronavirus while on Holiday in England
- Updated guidance on self-isolating when travelling to the UK
- Help and support if your business has been affected by Coronavirus
- Coronavirus (COVID-19) advice for accommodation providers