WETHERSPOON no longer has to ask customers to wear a mask or socially distance from Monday as lockdown restrictions fully lift.
The rules, among many others, are to be scrapped after the weekend, but the pub chain will still continue to provide protective measures for customers’ safety.
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Pubs in England are due to return to some normality after the weekend, and you might find you can order a pint from the bar and won’t have to limit your party numbers inside.
But Wetherspoon has said that some measures put in place to help the spread of coronavirus should remain to limit the possibility of a future lockdown or even closures.
The legal requirement for face coverings will be dropped from July 19, but the chain has said staff will be provided with them and customers can make their own decisions to wear them or not.
Social distancing will be scrapped too as part of the government’s policy, so punters will be allowed to drink standing up and to order at the bar once again.
We explain everything Wetherspoon will continue to do even after the restrictions lift on Monday.
What are the new rules in Wetherspoons?
You’ll still have to sign in when you get to the pub, with the NHS track and trace app or another form of contact tracing provided.
The good news is, you will be able to order at the bar now, but the app is still available and encouraged to limit crowding for drinks.
While you can bring more mates to join your table as the rule of six is scrapped, the pub might limit the number of customers allowed in at one time.
Face masks will be made available for employees, and they can make their own decision whether to wear them or not, which is the same rule for customers.
Wetherspoon has said that it will keep things like screens between tables in place and till-surround screens on bar serveries for now.
You’ll also be able to find hand sanitisers at the entrance and around the pub and staff areas still.
Regular cleaning will be kept up too.
In terms of how the pub will look inside, you’ll still be able to catch sight of directional signage for entrances and exits.
These will continue to help you navigate through the pub and avoid bottlenecks in passageways or on the way to the toilet or bar.
You still might want to bring a jacket for your visit though as the pub has said it will continue to increase natural ventilation by keeping doors and windows open as much as possible.
Single use condiments like sachets of ketchup and mustard will continue to be offered and the disposable food menus are here to stay too.
If you’re a staff member you might be checked for covid symptoms and have your temperature checked at the start of your shift still.
Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin said: “We believe that the July 2020 guidelines are a sensible backstop for the industry and strike a fair balance between health, employment and the economy.
“It is hoped that arbitrary and capricious government rules, which have been a regular feature in recent months, such as the requirement for substantial meals, curfews and table service, which have no scientific provenance, can be avoided in future.
“These sorts of rules damage the economy, are extraordinarily difficult for pub staff to implement and are invariably regarded by customers as absurd.”
Reportedly the pub chain had over 50 million customer visits last year that were all recorded through the government’s test and trace system.
All the previous rules set in place in adherence to lockdown restrictions seemed to work too as the chain’s chairman claimed not a single “outbreak” amongst customers occurred.
He said: “As UK Hospitality, the British institute of Innkeepers and the British Beer and Pub Association said in October last year, “of 22,500 …. hospitality venues surveyed, just 1% said they were linked by NHS test and trace to an incident”.
Wetherspoons will sell £2 pints of ale to celebrate lockdown restrictions ending.
We explain the rules for all pubs once the restrictions lift on Monday.
It’s not just pubs who will see a shake-up from next week, as supermarkets also have new rules after the restrictions lift.
