Do you think shielding will end on March 31st?

[user8670932]

The government seems confident shielding will finish on March 31st which is great, but just before Easter seems odd.
I live in Wales so they are hoping to open hospitality for Easter. Live in a popular seaside town so will have lots of visitors. My daughter works in a busy pharmacy and has been shielding. It seems crazy to think she will be back at work for Easter which is usually the busiest weekend of the year serving hundreds of people.

I hope not. I wonder if it will continue in Wales until the bulk of the adult popn have been offered the vaccine.

No. Funnily enough viruses don't respect date lines.

Yes, have you seen the case numbers today we are almost back to summer levels!

@Katie517
Worldometers shows daily cases in the past week between 6000-10000. In the summer case were between 600-900.

I hope so, I'm sick of hiding away shielding now

@2020fuckoff

I hope so, I'm sick of hiding away shielding now

@2020fuckoff I agree my daughter is sick of it too although we haven't been as strict this time as we were in lockdown 1, we go out walking now which has helped her a lot. I just worry about her working in a small busy store over Easter.

[quote user8670932]@Katie517
Worldometers shows daily cases in the past week between 6000-10000. In the summer case were between 600-900.[/quote]
We weren't testing last summer like we are now. Many work places are testing all staff twice weekly.

The general public can go to walk in centres for a lateral flow test if they are asymptotic, a PCR test if they have symptoms.

Only the symptomatic were getting tested last summer.

I think shielding will be paused again. I'm not sure it should when second doses don't really begin until April.

The last shielding was paused on August 1st and within 3 weeks you could see cases rising. Then a month after that the deaths began steadily climbing again.

Cases looked like they do now by the last week of September and Deaths looked like they do now by the last week of October. A month later we went into the November Lockdown, came out on December 2nd, some places were put into the new Tier 4 on December 20th, some more on Boxing Day. and back in Lockdown in January 5th.

We have vaccines now, and more variants. Who knows what difference they will make?

And anyway, our government is determined to roll the dice. Again. There's nothing we can do about it.

Were the test centres all set up the way they are now in the summer? People were saying don't waste a test?

PrincessNutNuts

Well we do know what difference the vaccines make, 80% cut in hospitalisation with both Pfizer and AZ. Spectacular result as they all say. Agree caution all the way but surely that's a game changer?

@Whatafabulousday

PrincessNutNuts

Well we do know what difference the vaccines make, 80% cut in hospitalisation with both Pfizer and AZ. Spectacular result as they all say. Agree caution all the way but surely that's a game changer?

Not if variants emerge that can beat them.

I think it will be stopped/paused on 31 March. Last time they paused it we shielders were still advised to work from home if we could though.

Last year shielding was pretty much the last part of opening up after lockdown on August 1st.

If it is paused on March 31st it will be part of Step 1. Does this seem logical? Most people who are shielding won't have had their second jab by then.

I think they may change shielding advice to x date after second jab.

Have people had an updated letter?

Ds has had letters all the way through, but the last letter takes him until Feb 21st and now school are saying he should come in on March 8th. We have suggested he start back after the Easter holidays. I'm trying to get hold of his paed or gp, to get something to cover us(again!.... Fucking hell this has been a long year!!)

@HazeyJaneII

Have people had an updated letter?

Ds has had letters all the way through, but the last letter takes him until Feb 21st and now school are saying he should come in on March 8th. We have suggested he start back after the Easter holidays. I'm trying to get hold of his paed or gp, to get something to cover us(again!.... Fucking hell this has been a long year!!)

Both my DH and DS have had updated shielding letters and emails saying to shield until 31st March. DS goes to a SEN school and they are not expecting people back until after Easter and then it will be looked at on a person by person basis.

Yes I've had a letter saying to shield until 31st March.

I think the vaccines are remarkable and should show an immense effect on hospitalisations and deaths - already starting to. I really do hope shielding ends on 31st march, having had one dose of the vaccine I should be over 90% protected from serious illness. I'll take those odds. I think the shielding community are completely shattered and many devastated and need to get on with life, at some point we need to live with the disease and the possibility of getting sick with it. I'm so thankful for the vaccine.

If your daughter has been shielding, presumably she’s had her vaccine? If not, has she tried booking online?

If she has it now, good protection will have kicked in my 31st March.

I'm beginning to feel the same way Madhairday. I need to start letting go of the anxiety of being more vulnerable than others and move into the mind set that I've had a good dose of protection now.

I don't want to 'throw away' my vaccine by taking risks either. It's going to be a gentle easement for me as cases drop in the community too. I'm going to keep an eye on what happens when the schools go back before I make any first changes.

Thanks @IceBearRocks
I wonder why ds hasn't had an updated letter.
Does anyone know, can you call the shielding service or is it better to wait for drs to return our call.

Check your/his spam box on email, they send emails routinely about shielding. These have been known to end up in spam.

My letter says to shield until 31st March. I expect it to be updated. Even if shielding does end I will still be avoiding crowds until most people have had second jab.