Living with COVID

England

The government has announced that in England, all COVID-19 restrictions for the general public will be removed on 24 February 2022 - see COVID-19 Response - Living with COVID-19.

Small business private practitioners now need only follow the Royal College of Podiatry's Clinical standards and will no longer need to carry out additional cleaning, have screens or undertake COVID-19 triaging, unless you wish to do so.

However, all healthcare professionals must still follow PPE guidance and wear face masks; and patients in healthcare settings must also wear face coverings, unless exempt, as previously advised.

Lateral flow tests are not mandatory; therefore it is down to your own risk assessment as to whether you wish to continue to use them and eventually pay for them once they are no longer available for free.

Scotland

In Scotland, vaccine certification will no longer be legally required from Monday 28 February, although the app will remain available so any business that wish to continue certification voluntarily to reassure customers will be able to do so.

Current legal requirements on the use of face coverings, the collection of customer details for contact tracing purposes, and for businesses, service providers and places of worship to have regard to guidance on COVID-19 and to take reasonably practicable measures set out in the guidance, are expected to be lifted on 21 March, subject to the state of the pandemic. At present the guidance for healthcare settings remains unchanged. Pactitioners must still wear masks and appropriate PPE, and patients must wear face coverings unless medically exempt.

Small business private practitioners need only follow the Royal College of Podiatry's Clinical standards and will no longer need to carry out additional cleaning, have screens or undertake COVID-19 triaging, unless you wish to do so.