Government issues updated guidance and timeline for retail reopening

• 1^st June – Outdoor markets and car showrooms will be able to reopen, as soon as they are able to meet the COVID-19 secure guidelines to protect shoppers and workers. As with garden centres, the risk of transmission of the virus is lower in these outdoor and more open spaces. Car showrooms often have significant outdoor space and it is generally easier to apply social distancing.
• 15^th June – All other non-essential retail including shops selling clothes, shoes, toys, furniture, books, and electronics, plus tailors, auction houses, photography studios, and indoor markets, will be expected to be able to reopen if the Government’s five tests are met and they follow the COVID-19 secure guidelines, giving them three weeks to prepare.

The updated guidance takes into account the best practice demonstrated by the many retailers which have been allowed to remain open and have applied social distancing measures in store. Measures that shops should consider include placing a poster in their windows to demonstrate awareness of the guidance and commitment to safety measures, storing returned items for 72 hours before putting them back out on the shop floor, placing protective coverings on large items touched by the public such as beds or sofas, and frequent cleaning of objects and surfaces that are touched regularly, including self-checkouts, trolleys, coffee machines and betting terminals, for example.

Shops will need to demonstrate that they have undertaken a COVID-19 risk assessment and taken steps to ensure that they are COVID-19 secure. As was the case prior to the most recent announcements, the timeline dates also remain subject to the Government’s five tests being met.

As per the timeline, hairdressers, nail bars and beauty salons, and the hospitality sector, remain closed, because the risk of transmission in these environments is considered higher where long periods of person to person contact is required.

See the updated timeline for retail to reopen in June here.

Find the updated Government guidance for shops and branches here.