Taking into account how YOU see the situation, when do YOU personally believe we will start returning to normal?

[Whitefeather01]

Just that really. When do YOU personally think restrictions will start to be lifted? Schools going back? Travel resumed? Etc.

completely normal, a long time. 18 months. But with waves of imposed suppression measures (lockdowns etc) and waves of things being more relaxed

Honestly I think September/October for schools and travel and that's being optimistic - I think we've pretty much lost spring/summer to lockdown, even if it becomes slightly softer in July/August, perhaps social distancing will be around until next year.

Maybe it'll stick and we'll forever be dodging each other...suddenly our personal space has increased 1000x fold!

I have wondered this @yellowcorvette! I wonder what lasting impact this will have on personal space.

I also wonder whether this trigger any agoraphobia!

Schools might go back in September. I think the restrictions will stay in place over the summer to a greater or lesser degree depending upon numbers of deaths. I think the country will limp along until a vaccine is available or until the virus has burnt itself out.

September-ish for general, healthy population, quite a lot longer for vulnerable groups. Until there’s a vaccine and everyone who can have it does, basically.

At least a year, probably longer.

I don't think we will ever be back to what was normal. I think things will start relaxing by July/August when shops, restaurants, cinemas etc will start reopening and schools start going back.

I will be very reluctant to shake people's hands or hug my friends and family after this.

I think September for schools too but distancing for months. This is the new normal

I think September for schools, but maybe even then not quite as usual, maybe a reduced timetable, I think other things will come back gradually but it'll be after Christmas before we really start relaxing back into anything resembling 'normal,' sigh.

probably autumn

BUT

I don’t think we will be ‘normal’ again. Shops and restaurants won’t just open and carry on, and holiday resorts will take a long time and won’t just spring back

Cinemas.....film production is on hold so will have a knock on effect. Will people be going for interviews in places which treated staff badly? Will the same staff return?

Life will be more unstable at the other end I think, simply because it will take time to rebuild society

September schools will open to more parents, possibly with it being optional.
October will see some shops beginning to open back up again. Like clothes shops etc. Cafes won't be open tho, they'll be closed for a good while.
Pubs / nightclubs will stay closed until well into next year.
Social distancing will continue and gatherings prohibited until next year at least.

Its going to have a huge negative effect on society for years and years tho.

I think we'll come out of lockdown in September. But as a previous poster has said it won't be 'business as usual'.

I think this will profoundly change the way we live. We may be less likely to commute. Businesses will close. Airlines will close and we will be less able to travel.

Financial imperatives will kick in soon, or the economy will collapse. Lower risk things will have to restart, higher risk like football, festivals etc, will have to wait

I think schools may reopen in September too. Well I’m hoping so as DH is supposed to be starting his A levels and I can’t see how that’s going to work if the schools are still doing distance learning.

I think the main change to society will be that we’ll be in the deepest recession we’ve been in for decades.

My personal opinion. I highly, highly doubt we will be under these current lockdown conditions for several months. Highly doubt it.
People are compliant now but they will not be for months on end. Even the Italian Prime Minister has said this is not possible.
It's already been predicted that 20% of small businesses will go bust.
What happens for routine operations or when people start needing to go to the dentist, opticians etc.?
Do they think parents can work and stay at home with children for a further 5 months ?
I'm sorry but I think the cure would be worse than the disease in that case.

Our schools go back on the 12th August. When they closed I genuinely thought they would simply reopen them. Now I think there is no way we will see the kids back in school so soon

What happens for routine operations

I think we will see a lot of 'preventable' deaths going months down the line. These cancelled operations and investigative appointments mean that so much will be missed and people will die. Not officially from CV but absolutely as a result of the virus

I would be surprised if schools go back before January, and I think social distancing restrictions will be lifted then reapplied for 18-24 months. I think restaurants and bars will reopen in November/December but will have limits on occupancy - maybe 50% of seats and no standing at the bar.

For economic reasons I can’t see this complete lockdown lasting past April.

Proper normal, not until there’s a vaccine.

Well we are in April now and death rate is still climbing.

Can’t see it ending in 4 weeks

I think people will (understandably) not tolerate it past a couple of months. There is already civil unrest in the South of Italy.
People will go insane. Surely they will at least ease off on some restrictions, e.g. Cafés and restaurants, but maybe ban very large gatherings like concerts and football matches.

I agree with those who believe it lockdown conditions will end sooner rather than later, the economy will not be able to withstand much more of this. The gardening industry is ruined to the tune of up to £1b, 1 in 5 small businesses will go bust. The government can’t prop up the whole economy and so the cure is becoming worse than the problem.

I agree that social distancing is with us for a long time but I do believe businesses will need to go back normal and travel will recommence before the summer.

I feel like I can’t even estimate when it will get better because it needs to get a lot worse first. The crisis hasn’t really began to impact my hospital yet in terms of mass covid admissions, we’re all waiting for it to ramp up. I think once we see the full effect then we may be able to guess a timescale of progression.

I think in terms of things returning to normal it will be a stage by stage approach, relaxing the lockdown first, then allowing more shops open, then finally large events sports matches etc will be last to return. But I think life will not go back to how it was, I think lots of people have embraced new practices, home cooking instead of eating out, working from home instead of commuting and free leisure time like country walks and cycles instead of cinema bowling etc I think a lot of businesses will continue to suffer for a long time after this all settles down.