What will the new tiers look like?

[IncidentsandAccidents]

So as usual the government have leaked their plans to the Sunday newspapers. It looks like lockdown will end on 2nd December but a new, stricter three tier system will be put in place.

I think my area will be in tier 3 and I'm wondering what additional restrictions will be in place I really hope that organised outdoor sports and the rule of 6 for outdoor meet ups are allowed. I also hope our local shops are given the chance to open in December.

I am assuming the new tier 3 will be just like the current lockdown.

We were due to go into Tier 3 just before lockdown, it’s basically the same as now.

@LadyPenelope68 I thought shops and cafes/restaurants were open in the previous tier 3? And youth sports and rule of 6 for outdoor meet ups in public spaces?

There was talk of using different larger areas for each tier, is that still possible or will it be the council districts like before.

I think the new tier 3 will be much like now but non essencial businesses may open and possibly outdoor sports.

I wonder if much of the stricter approach will be for areas that were in tier one? We were in tier two before but cases had been above regular average but stable for a long time. They have dropped in lockdown and we are under average now. I'm expecting to go back into tier two and I'm not sure much will change there.

My MIL was in a tier one area in SE that has been low throughout. In the space of a few weeks they've had rapid growth and are higher than my area now. Obviously they won't go back into tier one but it does make me wonder if the 'mixing in houses' thing is really key to controlling spread and therefore that might be what they target in a change to tiers?

Regular average?! That should say above the national average.

At the latest science conference, phe stated that tier 1 did nothing, tier 2 worked in some places but not others and tier 3 appeared to be working up north (although the tier 3 measures varied in different places).

I think rule of 6 indoors will be binned for two households again.

We were in tier one before and our levels have gone up but are now the lowest locally. I'm really hoping that gyms, swimming pools, and outdoor sports open up. I know they were open in tier three before so I am hopeful even if we end up as tier two now. Also non essential shops as it seems so arbitrary on the high street and I feel sorry for those who can't open when you can still buy almost everything from the bigger chains like Tesco and M&S.

It's the mixing of households indoors that needs to be looked at. The rule of 6 indoors was ridiculous - better to look at number of households or saying it has to be the same group of 6. I think travel restrictions between tiers may also be increased ( which I think is fine for indoor socialising but not necessary for outdoor activities).

[quote IncidentsandAccidents]@LadyPenelope68 I thought shops and cafes/restaurants were open in the previous tier 3? And youth sports and rule of 6 for outdoor meet ups in public spaces?[/quote]

You are right, that's what it was. My dc were still able to do sports and the pubs were allowed to be open until ten and the restaurants too. And the shops were open.

I can't remember about the rule of six though. I remember my dd worrying about walking to school in a group but that might have been at the start of this lockdown.

The big difference between two and three was that in three you can't go to each other's houses. In two you could,

I agree about the rule of six - surely it was lower risk when it was limited to two households? Up to six households moving indoors is a much bigger risk. I thought it was strange when they changed that rule "to make it simpler" as I'm sure most people understood it

In tier 3, cafes, pubs and restaurants were open but you could only go with household/bubbles.
Bowling alleys, cinemas etc were open and all outdoor attractions like zoos but again only allowed with household/bubbles.

In tier 3 there were a lot more things open than the current lockdown including non essential shops.

So maybe new tier two or even tier one will be like old tier three? If as a PP said the tier one measures were ineffective there's no point just going back to that

@SavoyCabbage, in tier two you can't go into people's houses but you can meet as a group of six outside. Meeting outside is banned in tier three areas. Only tier one had an allowance for going in peoples houses.

In fact, people in tier three were advantaged by the current lockdown in this respect... they went from not being able to meet anyone outside to being able to meet one other person. Hopefully that rule will stay for tier three.

@savoycabbage that's not correct. You were not allowed to go in each others houses in tier 2 and 3. Only tier 1 allowed this. (I'm in Nottinghamshire so have lived through both!)

I'm hoping they might consider, like Wales, allowing 2 houseshokds to bubble in each tier but to make it clear that this has to be the same household at all times, and get rid of the rule of 6. This would then only keep the risk of infection between 2 househkkds rather than possibly 6 different ones.

But who knows. I'm sure it'll be leaked beforehand anyway 😊

Not being able to meet anyone, even outside, is really harsh. I wouldn’t be happy with that.

@purpledaisies I agree. Being able to meet up for a walk with my mum is the other thing keeping me sane. I'd be really upset if they got rid of this.

I agree that it would make sense to strengthen tier 1 and 2 (particularly around indoor meet ups) but keep tier 3 pretty much as it was. Hopefully this would strike the right balance between mitigating risk and giving local businesses a fighting chance. We're in a rural area and a lot of the businesses around us are at breaking point.

Given that the risk outside is tiny and it has such a detrimental effect on mental health, I really hope that meeting one person outside will stay for all the tiers.

If tier three is set to be much stricter than what we have now - in terms of meeting - how can that be? No support bubbles? No meeting one person outside?
If those things happen I may as well finish myself off now. Life just isn’t worth living.

I'm pretty sure up to 6 people could meet in public outdoor spaces in the previous tier 3.

yes that's correct, tier 3 meant you couldn't meet up with anyone from outside bubble/household even outside.
Also you weren't meant to travel outside your tier even if this meant less travelling than to somewhere within your tier. The current lockdown leaves this open to interpretation as reasonable distance.

No - tier 3 couldn’t see anyone outside either.

We were due to go into tier 3 on the Monday and it was pubs and restaurants were shutting. I think shops could stay open. The stricter lockdown didn't make much difference to us.

The rule of six continues to apply to outdoor public spaces, such as parks, beaches, public gardens or sports venues

Here. This is talking about tier 3 areas

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/25/tier-3-lockdown-rules-england-latest-coronavirus-restrictions-explained