Next steps for the events industry

As of today, we are on Step 2 of the roadmap out Coronavirus restrictions. I expect will all remember 12th April as the day that the following businesses are re-opening:

• Hospitality venues with outside space
• Self-contained accommodation in England
• Outdoor attractions including zoos, theme parks, and drive-in performances (such as cinemas and concerts)
• Non-essential retail
• And we can finally get a haircut!

At the moment, the key date for conferences, meetings and events is 17 May, when conference centres and exhibition halls can open again subject to the capacity limits. They will need to comply with Covid-Secure guidance.

The Department of Culture Media and Sport allowed site visits to take place after Monday, 29th March. These are now allowed at a business event venue, even if it is closed. The purpose must be a future booking for a work-based event, if the inspection cannot be carried out remotely.

How EDGEvenues is helping you

At EDGEvenues we have made sure that venues are able to let you know that they are COVID Secure, by publishing their policies. There’s a Health and Safety Section with information about their procedures and accreditations, so you can be sure that you’re booking a venue that complies with the Coronavirus regulations.

Also, we are committed to making sure that your event will fit the space with correct social distancing. We’ve added a link to check that capacities are correct under the current guidelines and your group will have enough room to be safe.

The Events Research Programme

The Events Research Programme will explore different approaches to social distancing, ventilation, test-on-entry protocols and COVID-status certification.

It will carry out pilots in a series of venues to gather evidence on the transmission risks associated with different settings, and potential approaches to managing and mitigating transmission risks. The pilots will use the domestic COVID-status certification standards.

Early pilots will focus on demonstrating COVID-status through testing alone, while later pilots will seek to incorporate data on vaccination and acquired immunity.

The Programme will examine the extent to which COVID-status certification would help towards the return of crowds to mass events and closed settings, from football matches to theatre performances, and the reopening of nightclubs.

The programme will be run across a range of venue and activity types, including the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible in Sheffield and the Circus nightclub in Liverpool, with the aim of admitting a crowd of up to 20,000 to Wembley for the FA Cup final on 15 May.

A second phase of pilots will take place from the end of May.

Social Distancing Review

There is also a review in to Social Distancing, which is looking at whether existing rules, designed to limit virus transmission, could be relaxed in different settings.

The review is looking at key baseline measures, including how and when to safely lift or amend the 1m+ rule and related COVID-secure measures, as well as guidance on working from home.

The extent of any relaxation in social distancing measures is linked to the questions being explored by the COVID-Status Certification Review – including whether COVID-status certification can enable changes to social distancing.

Back to normal?

The final key date 21 June, when hopefully we will be able to get back to a more normal life and the following. It is expect that:

• Larger events can resume
• Night clubs can reopen
• No legal limits on social contact

COVID-Status Certification Review

The Government is currently carrying out a review of COVID-status certification, which could have a role to play both domestically and internationally, as a temporary measure.

There are some settings (such as essential public services, public transport and essential shops) where COVID-status certification should never be required, in order to ensure access for all.

However, COVID-status certification could play a role in settings such as theatres, nightclubs, and mass events such as festivals or sports events to help manage risks where large numbers of people are brought together in close proximity.

The Government will begin to trial COVID-status certification in certain settings, including large events, through the Events Research Programme.

It is possible that COVID-status certification could also play a role in reducing social distancing requirements in settings which people tend to visit more frequently, for example hospitality. This has significant implications for businesses and their customers, so this will be further considered in consultation with the hospitality industry, as part of the review of social distancing rules.

Global Travel Taskforce

The Government wants to see a return to non-essential international travel as soon as possible, while still managing the risk from imported cases and variants of concern.

Given the state of the pandemic abroad, and the progress of vaccination programmes in other countries and varients, the Government has not yet confirmed that non-essential international travel can resume from 17 May.

When non-essential international travel does return it will do so with a risk-based “traffic light” system.

This will add a new green category to the current system, which means no isolation requirement on return to the UK – although pre-departure and post-arrival tests would still be needed.

Search on EDGEvenues for the perfect Covid-19 secure venue.

Or if you would like to promote your venue here, call us on 01780 484051.