New National Restrictions

New national restrictions will apply in England from Thursday 5 November until Wednesday 2 December. After 4 weeks the government will review the restrictions, based on the latest data.

From Thursday 5 November you must stay home as much as possible, only leaving for:

  • attending schools, nurseries and other education settings
  • if you are a worker who cannot work from home
  • to shop for essential items such as food and medicine
  • for exercise outdoors, with members of your household (or with one other person from another household)
  • for medical reasons or to escape injury or harm
  • to provide care for vulnerable people

For more details on how the restrictions will work visit: www.gov.uk/guidance/new-national-restrictions-from-5-november

Changes to Council Services

The following Council services will be affected by the new national restrictions:

Services that will close temporarily:

  • Reading Museum and Town Hall (The Coroner’s Court will remain open)
  • Marriage, Civil Partnership and in person citizenship ceremonies (Notice of Marriage appointments will remain open)
  • RSL Leisure centres at South Reading, Palmer Park and Meadway will close today (Rivermead, run by GLL, will also close)
  • Outdoor sports such as football
  • Reading Arts venues – the Hexagon and South Street Arts Centre.

All other services will continue, some with some minor changes.

Central Library and Caversham library remain open for booked access, although computer bookings will be temporarily suspended.

The birth registration service will continue to run.

For full details visit:  https://www.reading.gov.uk/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-how-our-services-are-affected/

Keep up to date

You can also keep up to date by following our social media @ReadingCouncil on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. You can also sign up to our residents email here: www.reading.gov.uk/council/residents-newsletter

Support for vulnerable people

The One Reading Community Hub will be offering support for vulnerable residents during this difficult time. Find out more here: www.reading.gov.uk/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-one-reading-community-hub-support

Support for local businesses

Find out more about how we are supporting local businesses during the national restriction period: www.reading.gov.uk/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-business-information

Support for wellbeing

We know increased restrictions can impact on everyone’s mental and physical health. We’ll be signposting to where you can get help and support here: www.reading.gov.uk/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-covid-19-useful-information/#well

Last updated on 03/11/2020