New guidance on wearing face coverings – changes from 10 December

From Friday 10 December 2021, the public, and staff in public-facing areas in England, are required to wear face coverings in these additional settings:

• community centres, members clubs and social clubs
• libraries and public reading rooms
• visitor attractions and entertainment venues (includes cinemas, indoor theatres, concert halls, bingo halls, snooker and pool halls, amusement arcades, adventure activity centres, indoor sports stadiums, funfairs, indoor theme parks, casinos, skating rinks, bowling alleys, indoor play areas including soft-play areas)
• indoor areas of sports stadiums.

This includes guest accommodation as the guidance says ‘you should continue to wear a face covering in other indoor places that are not listed above, which are crowded and enclosed and where you may come into contact with people you do not normally meet’.

Read the guidance here – NB the above list is not comprehensive – see below for exceptions.

Masks NOT required in hospitality settings

The main public guidance has also been updated in line with the ‘Plan B announcement’ on 8 December. This guidance also contains a list of premises where people are exempt from wearing facemasks, which includes:

• Restaurants, cafés and canteens
• Bars
• Gyms and exercise facilities
• Nightclubs, dance halls and discotheques.

NB Settings in which face coverings are required must display signage or take other measures to ensure customers are aware of the requirement to wear a face covering on their premises where there is no applicable exemption or reasonable excuse.

See the guidance on what you can and cannot do here.