October 28, 2020 3.30 pm This story is over 41 months old

How Lincolnshire is affected by the Nottinghamshire and South Yorkshire tier 3 lockdowns

Minimal contact with tier 3 areas advised
| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
By Local Democracy Reporter

Travel and overnight stays into tier 3 lockdown areas are not advised, unless for essential work or education, as Lincolnshire’s neighbours in Nottinghamshire will join South Yorkshire in the tightest coronavirus restrictions.

Under tier 3 measures, bars and pubs have to close unless they serve meals, and households aren’t allowed to mix either indoors or outdoors.

The whole of Nottinghamshire, including Newark, will go into tier 3, the highest possible lockdown measures on Friday, October 30.

This comes less than a week after Lincolnshire’s northern neighbours in South Yorkshire went into tier 3 lockdown on Saturday, October 24.

Lincolnshire will remain in tier 1 (medium) for now, local leaders decided today.

The restrictions for tier 3 – very high – lockdown.

Tier 3 provides guidance against travelling in and out of the area, suggesting that you should avoid journeys, with exceptions including work and school.

This means that people who live in Lincolnshire but work in Nottinghamshire/South Yorkshire, or vice versa, can still travel to work but are encouraged to work from home where possible.

This also applies to people who may want to stay overnight in either South Yorkshire or Nottinghamshire, with the government advising against this when travelling to a tier 3 area.

The city of Nottingham currently has high numbers of COVID-19 cases, with 468.9 per 100,000 people testing positive according to Public Health England’s latest figures.

Nottingham has over 400 cases per 100,000 people. | Photo: Public Health England

Lincolnshire on the other hand has considerably lower figures than that, showing 144.2 cases per 100,000 people as of the seven days up to October 22.

Lincolnshire currently stands at tier 1, which is a medium alert level and allows for hospitality sectors to remain open and the rule of six to be enforced for social contact.

Lincolnshire is tier 1 – medium – lockdown.

Some of the key differences between tiers 1 and 3 include:

  • Pubs and restaurants can stay open but must shut at 10pm in tier 1, but have to close unless substantial meals are being served in tier 3
  • The rule of six applies both indoors and outdoors when meeting people in tier 1, but only applies in outdoor spaces such as parks in tier 3
  • There are no travel restrictions within tier 1 areas, whereas tier 3 areas are advised to reduce journeys where possible
  • Residential care is open to external visitors with additional precautions in tier 1, but closed in tier 3, except for in exceptional circumstances
  • No household mixing is allowed either indoors or outdoors in hospitality venues in tier 3, whereas up to six can meet in these places in tier 1
  • Childcare bubbles for those under 14-years-old apply in tier 3, but not in tier 1
  • Venues such as gyms or entertainment attractions will be closed “subject to consultation” in tier 3, but remain open in tier 1 (apart from nightclubs)
  • The message of hands, face, space remains across all tiers in the UK

Lincolnshire County Council’s Director of Public Health, Derek Ward, has said that there is no reason for Lincolnshire to change its alert level yet.

He said: “Although the rates everywhere else are much lower, infection rates in Lincoln itself have gone up recently but we aren’t anticipating that it will mean moving into any other tiers at this stage.”