A brief guide to reopening
1st June 2020
Following government updates, it is expected that many businesses will be able to reopen from the 4th July providing that adequate social distancing measures and that you meet the requirements set out by the government to ensure that you are Covid-19 Compliant. It is expected that hotels and other hospitality businesses, will have a later opening date which will be announced in the coming weeks.
If your business meets the required guidelines and you are planning to reopen your business to the public, we’ve put together a brief guide to making sure that you are Covid-19 Compliant and are able to ensure the safety of your staff and visitors.
Staff Safety
First and foremost, staff must not come to work if they have symptoms of the virus or live in a house hold where someone else does.
Make sure to regularly brief staff so that you can make sure that they are able to carry out the new guidelines. Ensure that every staff member has access to proper hand washing equipment which is to be used at regular intervals throughout the working day and on arriving and leaving your premises.
Anything that is frequently touched should be regularly disinfected and staff should abide by staggered timings for break, arrival and departure. Staff should make sure that they maintain a 2m distance at all times, including at break times.
Any shared items, including phones, tills, keyboards and card machines should be disinfected immediately before and after use.
If your staff are required to wear a uniform, it is suggested that these be changed into on arrival at work and out of before heading home. Once home, uniforms should be washed at a temperature above 60 degrees where possible.
Any staff member that is required to take deliveries or are public facing, should minimise their contact as much as possible and make sure to wash their hands and surfaces between customers. If staff members need to cough or sneeze, instruct that they do so into their elbow or a tissue which should be immediately binned and they are to wash their hands afterwards.
Where possible, staff will need to be provided with PPE that is inline with Government and PHE guidance. This may mean installing screens or providing them with face masks or protective clothing. Please check the government guidance for PPE measures within your industry. These things must be in place before you reopen.
In addition, staff will need to be trained to make sure that they understand the new risks and rules. This should include details on social distancing and how this can be implemented in your business. Staff should have a brief knowledge of how transmission occurs and the importance of maintaining clean surfaces and hands should be a key part of this new training. Again, this should happen before reopening.
Businesses should have a plan in place for if any members of staff begin to develop symptoms while at work. Follow the current government guidance in all cases, but ensure that the person is sent home and remains there for the quarantine period. Any parts of the business that they have been in should be disinfected thoroughly using gloves and a disposable apron. Whoever is in charge of this task, should then get changed and wash their hands once disposing of their PPE.
Working with food
For businesses that are working within the food industry, make sure that it is possible to clean all equipment, including those used by the customer at a temperature of over 60 degrees.
It is recommended that food businesses restrict their menus on reopening to ensure that cross over and access to food can be controlled and monitored easily. We would suggest implementing rules such as allowing one person into the changing rooms/chilled stores at a time and limiting the number of people in the kitchen/dining/serving areas as much as possible.
All guests and staff are to maintain a 2m distance, this may mean changing staff rotas and rearranging dining areas and kitchen spaces. These must be done before reopening.
Customer Safety
To ensure safety to customers and staff, make sure that you reduce any touch points to a minimum, this includes leaflets, pens and anywhere that money is exchanged. If these need to be in place and regularly used, they should be replaced and disinfected between customers.
Customers and staff must maintain social distancing, so it is important to regulate how many customers are allowed access to your business at any one time. Reception areas, communal areas, queues, restaurants and other places that are for customer use must be adapted to allow this to happen. Floor markings and extra signage are important and should be decided on and in place before reopening. Consider alternative ways for guests to check in or purchase tickets. Encourage this to be done in advance via email where possible, encourage the use of contactless payments and make sure that card machines, tills, phones and surfaces such as counter tops are disinfected between guests. Staff should step back to allow customers to come forward to use card machines and the customer should then retreat two metres for your staff to continue the transaction. Consider adding screens and markings to the floor to help ensure safety.
Make sure that hand washing facilities are available to all guests, where possible, ensure that hands are washed on arrival and when leaving your business.
You must maintain communication with guests at all times, either by text/ email or by regularly updating your website so they know what rules have been implemented and how to proceed. Ensure that all rooms/ areas that are used by your customers are well ventilated and display all information clearly and in a variety of mediums, so that all guests are able to access the information.
Avoid large gatherings of people in one place, mark all queue areas and include floor markings in any place that has a high foot traffic.
Social distancing is key, for attractions, this may mean halving your capacity so there are tables/seats between each customer. Businesses like soft play areas etc may want to assess new ways that they can provide for their customers and follow the government guidance.
For accommodation providers
The government will announce when it is safe to begin reopening. When this is announced, make sure that any lifts are used sparingly and are regularly cleaned, provide hand washing equipment near to the lift doors to encourage guests to keep their hands clean.
If you offer room service/luggage services, these must be adapted to take into account the 2m social distancing, contactless delivery of luggage and food is advised and cash should not be handled. Implement a system for the quick delivery and collection of any trays/luggage and make sure the area is disinfected once the job has been completed.
You may also want to review the frequency of your house keeping regime.
For businesses with pools/hot tubs etc
Water quality is paramount, please make sure that this is checked regularly and that pools and other water areas including water slides, theme parks etc are all regularly cleaned and disinfected and that staff receive appropriate training to allow them to do so safely.
For eateries:
Ordering and serving should be done at a distance and all plates/glasses etc should only be picked up by front of house staff to be returned to the kitchen. These members of staff should ensure that they wash their hands before moving on to clear another table. In terms of condiments etc, consider using individually wrapped options and deliver these with food to minimise the spread of infection. Cutlery should also be brought to the table and not be out in the open.
If a guest becomes unwell while on your premises, they should be advised to leave and return home to self isolate according to the current government guidance. Once they have left, it is important to do a full, deep clean of the area to minimise the risk of infection. Make sure you have policy in place for if staff notice customers having acute symptoms or breathing difficulties, so they know to seek medical help and not to engage in usual first aid practices unless absolutely necessary.
Accommodation providers should ensure that there are procedures in place should a guest fall in and is unable to check out. Full decontamination must take place once the guest has left the building.
Prior to opening any business:
- Make sure you have carried out a complete risk assessment
- Look at how customers interact with you and make the necessary amendments
- Contact all staff and begin training, the government has provided online training
- Source suppliers for PPE and any other equipment you might need to make your business Covid-19 compliant. These must arrive and be implemented before your staff return to work.
Further more detailed guidance will be provided by the government once they have announced that your industry is able to reopen. Do not reopen any business until a date is announced, the current date of 4th July is conditional. Please do keep up to date with all government announcements.