Coronavirus news summary special: Christmas restrictions | Wednesday 25th November

Here is your Christmas coronavirus restrictions news summary from #TeamRAD At Christmas coronavirus restrictions will be eased to allow people to mix with a slightly wider circle of family and friends. Across the UK, people will be able to form "bubbles" of three households over a five-day period. Who am I allowed to see? Between 23 and 27 December, the three households will be allowed to form a temporary "Christmas bubble". They can mix indoors and stay overnight. It has been agreed that in Northern Ireland this will be extended to 22 to 28 December, so as to allow time to travel between the nations. Bubbles will be allowed to meet each other: • In each other's homes • At a place of worship • In an outdoor public space, or garden The bubbles will be fixed, so you will not be able to mix with two households on Christmas Day and two different ones on Boxing Day. There will be no limit to the number of people in a household joining a bubble. People who are self-isolating should not join a Christmas bubble. If someone tests positive, or develops coronavirus symptoms up to 48 hours after the Christmas bubble last met, everyone will have to self-isolate. Where am I allowed to travel in the UK? During this time (December 23-27) people will be allowed to visit their families anywhere in the UK - but the government has warned that there will not be extra public transport laid on and that people should plan their travel in advance. What are the rules for going to the pub or a restaurant? You will not be allowed to go with your Christmas bubble to hospitality settings, such as pubs and restaurants, or to entertainment venues. You can meet people outside your Christmas bubble, but only in line with the tier rules of the area in which you are staying. The tier levels for each area are due to be announced tomorrow. What if a family member is in an at-risk group? The government has advised that people meeting friends and family over Christmas need to make “personal judgements” about whether it is safe to do so. …Even if getting together with loved ones is within the rules, we should all consider the risks - especially those who are vulnerable and in at-risk groups. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that coronavirus will not call a truce at Christmas and that the virus will still be as contagious as at any other time. Can children come home for Christmas? Children whose parents who live apart are allowed to be part of two separate Christmas bubbles. This means they can see both parents without being counted as part of another household. University students may return to their parents at the end of term and be counted as part of their household straight away - but if parents have three or more grown up children who are not at university, they cannot all form a Christmas bubble with their parents. Individual households can split for Christmas. So, if three people are sharing a home they can all go and form separate Christmas bubbles with their families and come back to form a single household again afterwards. And that’s it for this news summary special. If there are any news stories you would like more information on, do please get in touch. Email us: [email protected] Take care, stay safe and we will see you soon BSL (British Sign Language) Royal Association for Deaf people: https://royaldeaf.org.uk/