The Government has revealed its four-step plan to smash lockdown by summer, aiming to lift all social contact limits by 21 June. Announced on Monday 22 February, the roadmap will ease restrictions gradually, depending on key data and vaccine success.
Four Tests to Unlock Britain
The roadmap’s progress hinges on four crucial tests:
- The vaccine rollout keeps up the pace.
- Vaccines prove effective in cutting hospitalisations and deaths.
- Infection rates don’t overwhelm the NHS.
- No major threats from new COVID variants.
Each step will have at least five weeks in between, allowing time to assess data and give a week’s notice before easing the next set of rules.
Step-by-Step: What’s Opening When?
Step 1 – From 8 March:
- Schools and colleges fully reopen for all students, including practical higher education courses.
From 29 March:
- Outdoor sports facilities like tennis and basketball courts unlock.
Step 2 – From 12 April:
- Non-essential shops and personal care services (hairdressers, nail salons) reopen.
- Public buildings like libraries and community centres welcome visitors.
- Outdoor attractions, zoos, theme parks, drive-in cinemas, and performances return.
- Indoor gyms and swimming pools open doors again.
- Hospitality serves customers outdoors with no curfew or meal requirement; table service remains.
- Self-contained holidays, like campsites and self-catering lets, permitted.
Step 3 – No earlier than 17 May:
- Most venues reopen, excluding highest-risk sectors.
- Outdoor social contact rules disappear, but gatherings over 30 stay banned.
- Outdoor cinemas and theatres reopen; indoors, rule of six or two households applies.
- Indoor pubs and restaurants reopen under same outdoor rules—no meal needed, no curfew, table service continues.
- Cinemas, soft play, indoor sports classes all resume.
- Large performances & sports events allowed with crowd limits.
- Up to 30 people allowed at weddings, receptions, funerals, and other life events.
Step 4 & Social Rules
By 21 June or later:
- All legal limits on social contact expected to be lifted.
- Nightclubs and other closed venues plan to reopen.
- Restrictions on large events and weddings may also go.
The government will review social distancing, face masks, and working from home rules ahead of Step 4. People should keep working remotely wherever possible until then.
Enforcement and Safety Measures
Any newly reopened venues must strictly follow social contact rules. Essex Police and local councils will keep up enforcement, demanding strong safety plans from businesses. Workforce testing and social distancing guidance will remain vital to keep risks low.
The next Budget on 3 March will detail how the Government plans to protect jobs and livelihoods through these reopening stages.
