Re-opening

UK Government announcement update 30/9/20

Below is a summary of the latest government guidance for visitor attractions, our thanks to ALVA for sharing this information:

Guidance clarifications from DCMS:

  • Wearing face coverings behind perspex screens:
    Face coverings must be worn by retail, leisure and hospitality staff working in areas which are open to the public and where they come or are likely to come within close contact of a member of the public. If businesses have taken steps in line with HSE guidance for COVID Secure workplaces to create a physical barrier (e.g. perspex) between workers and members of the public, then staff behind the barrier will not be required to wear a face covering. This position has been cleared by DHSC legal in conjunction with HSE.
  • Event venues and hotel function spaces: DCMS has confirmed with BEIS that if venues comply with the COVID Secure guidance and all the relevant planning and alcohol licencing requirements they can operate in the same way as restaurants with tables of six in a function room.
  • Working safely during coronavirus guidance updates

Guidance on working safely during COVID-19 in England has been updated following the national measures announced last week:

The visitor economy guidance has also been updated:

  • Coach Tours: If it is possible to ensure that groups of more than six (or larger if they are from one household) do not mingle on a tour, it can go ahead. People must stay in their own group on all parts of the tour - for example whilst in hospitality settings and when visiting attractions as well as whilst on the coach. Legislation does not place any capacity constraints on public transport services, private hire vehicles or leisure tours. Operators should continue to provide COVID Secure transport services which can accommodate multiple groups of six people. DfT will update the transport guidance shortly to clarify and assist passengers and operators.
  • Guided tours: If it is possible to ensure that groups of more than six (or larger if they are from one household) do not mingle on a guided tour, it can go ahead. People must stay in their own group at all times throughout the tour. Tours may take place indoors or outdoors provided businesses undertake risk assessments in line with this guidance document and put any necessary mitigations in place.
    Other guidance updates
  • Guidance for businesses selling food in local lockdown-affected areas of the North East of England, West Yorkshire, the North West of England, the West Midlands and Greater Manchester has been updated in line with the pan-England guidance for working safely during COVID-19 noted above.
  • The deferral of VAT payments guidance has been updated. Businesses who deferred VAT due from 20 March to 30 June 2020 will now have the option to pay in smaller payments over a longer period. Instead of paying the full amount by the end of March 2021, businesses can make smaller payments up to the end of March 2022, interest free.
  • The list of jobs that qualify for travel exemptions now apply to National Lottery and advertising productions, and guidance has been updated for elite sportspersons.
  • The safer travel guidance for passengers reflects latest rules on social contact and face coverings.
  • The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme video guidance has been updated with information on how to claim the second grant.
  • Updates have been made to the guidance on how to self-isolate when arriving in the UK, including exemptions for people arriving from countries on the travel corridors list and clarifying that the self-isolation period begins on the day the person leaves the non-exempt country or territory.

UK Government announcements 23/09/20

  • Clarification on Meetings and Guided Tours
    Meetings can still be held with up to 30 attendees and that guides can still lead groups of up to 30 people provided that each individual party within the group complies with the Rule of Six.
  • Mandatory Wearing of Face Coverings
    Guidance has been issued clarifying that the mandatory wearing of face coverings for tourism and hospitality workers is only if they are working in areas that are open to the public and where they come or are likely to come within close contact of a member of the public. So kitchen staff and back office staff do not have to wear masks unless they move into the public areas of the business.
  • Self-Isolation Guidance
    The guidance on self-isolating has been updated to reflect that, from 28th September, people will be fined if they do not self-isolate after testing positive for Coronavirus or being told to do so by Track and Trace team members.

Campaign 'Escape the Everyday' launches to highlight visitor attractions and experiences to consumers

VisitBritain has launched a new £5m domestic marketing campaign, ‘Escape the Everyday’, which aims to highlight the destinations, visitor attractions and experiences on offer across the UK during the autumn/winter shoulder season and beyond. The campaign has kicked off over the last week on social media and via ‘on demand’ television advertising. Members interested in getting involved in this campaign can find out more here.

NHS Test & Trace QR code poster

Create and display an NHS Test & Trace QR code poster

For venues in England and Wales, an online tool is available to help businesses generate QR codes and create posters to display to assist in the mandatory collection of customer, staff and visitor data to support NHS Test & Trace. Organisations should display official NHS QR code posters at their venue entrances to help support contact tracing. Visitors should scan the QR code when they arrive using the NHS COVID-19 app. Organisations should still maintain an alternative means to maintain contact details for people who do not have a smartphone or do not want to use the NHS COVID-19 app.

Sector-specific guidance updated for working safely during coronavirus (COVID-19)

Guidance on working safely during COVID-19 has been updated with priority actions for businesses to take, including steps for collecting information for the Test and Trace system and rules on gatherings of more than 6 people. Sector-specific guidance is available for the following:

Advice from attractions which have already opened

  • Clear importance of lots of pre-visit information and FAQs on attraction websites; essential to have clear information about toilets, what's open and what's not, the range of food and drink to buy, can people bring their own picnics etc.
  • Videos showing what a visit will feel and look like are hugely valuable and popular
  • That for many members of the public visiting and attractions - often their favourite - is an emotional experience for them after months of lockdown
  • The importance of ensuring that furloughed staff who can't yet work or participate in the excitement and frenzy of reopening are not forgotten, or their contribution and value not celebrated on opening day; avoid a two culture organisation
  • A significant no-show rate of members is the norm for most attractions (typically between 15 - 40% in the first few days and weeks, as opposed to just 5 - 6% of no-shows for paying visitors) but this can be reduced by careful and sensitive communication with members not to book multiple slots and telling them of the consequences on others of not turning-up
  • Many attractions reporting record retail sales, especially at pop-up shops throughout the sites which require little infrastructure and just a contactless payment point

The latest Consumer Tracking Report from BVA BDRC. Key points are:

  • There is no significant improvement in the public mood
  • Only 3% of people have been to a visitor attraction since they reopened
  • On average, people say that it will be 3-4 months before they go to an attraction with 28% saying they will do so before the end of August
  • Despite the announcement that indoor attractions will be able to open from 4th July, the average lead time remains more than four months
  • Over half of people say that they intend to take a UK holiday before the end of the year
  • The proportion of people anticipating taking a summer overseas trip remains consistently low ahead of an announcement on air bridges.

'We're Good to Go' Approval by VisitEngland

VisitEngland have received 14,000 registrations for the 'We're Good To Go' accreditation mark and 12,000 have been approved.

VisitEngland’s “We’re Good to Go” mark is now live so that businesses can register their property as being managed in a COVID safe manner. The accreditation is UK-wide and is being delivered with and by the national tourist boards in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
https://goodtogo.visitbritain.com/
This mark is available to businesses in all parts of the UK with businesses being assessed according to their respective national guidance including the social distancing and cleanliness protocols that must be in place. In England, businesses must align with the UK Government’s official guidance for the sector including ‘Working Safely during COVID-19: Visitor Economy’. An ‘alert’ system ensures that businesses signed up to the standard are notified of any changes to the official guidance and a call-handling service will provide support for businesses. There are also assessors who will carry-out random spot-checks on businesses to ensure that they are adhering to the requirements of the official guidance and the protocols.
The final bit of the jigsaw - the social distancing and cleaning protocols for businesses will be available shortly on the UK Hospitality website
https://www.ukhospitality.org.uk/page/coronavirus

UK Cultural Sector reopening tracker

This latest version of the tracker looks at the UK Cultural Sector as a whole.

Further details to follow.

Speech by Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the economy

Boris Johnson gave a speech on the economy on June 30th , announcing a “New Deal” which puts jobs and infrastructure at the centre of the government’s economic growth strategy. The Prime Minister announced the bringing forward of £5bn of capital investment projects, supporting jobs and the economic recovery. In the Autumn the government will also publish a National Infrastructure Strategy which will set a clear direction on core economic infrastructure, including energy networks, road and rail, flood defences and waste. UK Government also intends to bring forward funding to accelerate infrastructure projects in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland and will carry out a review to look at how best to improve road, rail, air and sea links between our four nations to create a more connected kingdom. Find out more here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zr3xkOjDWIw

The part about science is 22:45 mins - 25 mins. Video finishes at 28 mins followed by questions

Guidance and Protocols

DON'T DOWNLOAD AS GUIDANCE WILL CHANGE. Use the links to see live information.

With businesses busy putting together their management systems to make sure that they operate in a Covid Safe manner from 4th July, it is important to remember that the Government’s guidance will invariably be updated as our knowledge of the disease increases and as Government policy changes. Businesses must keep checking that they are using the latest version of the guidance rather than simply relying on a downloaded copy which could soon be out of date.

To ensure that you always have the most up-to-date version, it pays to bookmark the appropriate links and regularly check for updates.

Visitor Economy
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/the-visitor-economy

Hotels and other guest accommodation
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/hotels-and-other-guest-accommodation

Restaurants, pubs, bars and takeaway services
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/restaurants-offering-takeaway-or-delivery

Heritage Locations
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/heritage-locations

Offices and contact centres
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/offices-and-contact-centres

Arts and Culture
https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/covid-19/covid-19-government-reopening-guidance

UK Hospitality Protocols
https://www.ukhospitality.org.uk/page/coronavirus

Guidance for Children’s Holiday Club Operators

The Department for Education has produced guidance for organisations or individuals who provide community activities, tuition, holiday clubs or after-school clubs for children, as well as their staff and volunteers. This guidance covers issues such as:

Information from 14th May 2020

The UK Government published a Plan to Rebuild document in May which lays out in detail their phased approach to re-opening and discusses which types of businesses may be able to re-open safely and when.

Re-opening: What visitors think highlights two reports from the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (ALVA) with some key insights into how people are feeling about returning to attractions.

Here you can download a recent report from Visit Britain looking at international approaches to supporting the tourism sectors and to re-opening.

The IAAPA, The Global Association for the Attractions Industry have published re-opening guidance which you can read more about here or download the full report here.

Further additional reading which might be interesting to our members is this article about an anti-viral spray which can be used to treat frequently touched surfaces such as elevator buttons and handrails and this article about the re-opening of Disneyland in Shanghai on May 11th 2020.

Health and Safety Executive

The Health and Safety Executive is a UK government agency responsible for the encouragement, regulation and enforcement of workplace health, safety and welfare, and for research into occupational risks in Great Britain.

Link to website

  • providing advice, information and guidance
  • raising awareness in workplaces by influencing and engaging
  • operating permissioning and licensing activities in major hazard industries
  • carrying out targeted inspections and investigations
  • taking enforcement action to prevent harm and hold those who break the law to account

ASDC would like to thank ALVA for sharing so much information over the past months.

Much of the information above is compiled and written by the ALVA team.

Collation of all the downloads on this webpage