Timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic in England (2021)

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The following is a timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic in England during 2021. There are significant differences in the legislation and the reporting between the countries of the UK: England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales.

Timeline[edit]

January 2021[edit]

  • 1 January – The UK government announces that all primary schools in London will remain closed for the start of the winter term.[1]
  • 2 January –
    • Teaching unions have told primary school staff it is unsafe to return to school and urged them to implement remote learning as pressure grows on the government to keep schools closed for the first two weeks of January following its decision to do so in London.[2][3]
    • An anti-lockdown protest is held in Hyde Park in London; 17 people are arrested at the demonstration.[4][5]
    • Police chiefs have called for police officers to be given priority for COVID vaccinations after reports that 1,300 Metropolitan Police officers are absent from work because of the virus.[6]
  • 3 January –
    • Following concerns about the safety of reopening schools, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has urged parents of primary age children to send them to school the following day if their school is open, saying there is "no doubt in my mind that schools are safe".[7] Despite this, many primary schools have still decided to not open after the Christmas break. So far Essex Council has said that would keep schools closed at least until 6 January; Kent county Council along with Birmingham's education authorities asked the `Education Secretary to allow primaries to stay closed. They said the argument for reopening amid high infection rates “does not stack up”.[8]
    • Johnson has also stated that tougher restrictions are "probably about to get tougher" in some parts of England as COVID-19 cases continue to increase.[9]
    • Leader of the Opposition Sir Keir Starmer calls for a national lockdown to be announced within 24 hours in order to tackle the rising number of COVID cases.[10]
    • Wendy Simon, the Acting Mayor of Liverpool, and other Liverpool City Council members, have called for England to go into a national lockdown in order to curb rising COVID cases in the city.[11]
    • Garrett Emmerson, the Chief Executive of the London Ambulance Service, describes the service as being under "incredible pressure" but "coping".[12]
    • Paediatricians have sought to reassure parents that the new strain of COVID is not more dangerous to children after a nurse based at a London hospital told the BBC that her hospital had "a while ward of children" suffering with the virus.[13]
  • 4 January
    • Most of England's primary schools are reopened, amid concerns over whether pupils should be returning under the current COVID restrictions.[14]
    • After saying there is "no question" that tougher COVID measures will be introduced "in due course",[15] Prime Minister Boris Johnson makes a televised address in which he announces another lockdown for England, with rules similar to those in March 2020. People are permitted to leave home only for essential reasons, which include work, daily exercise, essential shopping and medical treatment. Schools are closed from the following day, though vulnerable children and those of key workers may still attend, and pre-school remains open, while university students will not return to campus but instead have online tuition. End of year examinations are once again cancelled. Grassroots sport is suspended, but not elite sport.[16]
    • Dialysis patient Brian Pinker, 82, has become the first person to receive the Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.[17]
  • 5 January
    • The UK records over 60,000 positive cases of COVID in one day,[18] the highest ever, with over 50,000 of those cases being from England.[19]
    • Declaring that the government closed schools "with the heaviest of hearts", Cabinet Secretary Michael Gove confirms that GCSE and A Level examinations scheduled for summer 2021 have been cancelled, with grades once again based on teacher assessment.[20] But while GCSEs and A Levels are cancelled, vocational exams such as BTECs will still go ahead.[21]
    • Labour Leader Sir Keir Starmer calls for a "round the clock" COVID vaccination programme to tackle the rise in cases.[22]
    • England's Chief Medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, suggests "a few" COVID restrictions may be required in Winter 2021–22 to control the virus, particularly if people do not adhere to the government's "stay at home" message.[23]
  • 6 January
    • With the third lockdown officially under way, Boris Johnson says he cannot guarantee that all children will be back at school before the summer holidays.[24]
    • MPs vote 524–16 in favour of the latest lockdown measures for England.[25] Legislation for the 3rd national lockdown comes into force by putting every area in England into the tier 4 area and strengthening the restrictions.[26]
    • Education Secretary Gavin Williamson confirms that GCSE and A Level grades for summer 2021 will be based on teachers' assessment.[27]
    • The UK government announces seven new vaccination hubs for England, to be located in London, Newcastle, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Surrey and Stevenage. They are scheduled to become operational from the following week.[28]
  • 7 January –
    • A change in government rules regarding who can attend school now permits children without laptops or room to study to attend, sparking concerns schools will be overrun with such children.[29]
    • Nursery providers have asked the government to provide them with evidence that it is safe for them to remain open while schools and colleges are closed.[30]
  • 8 January –
    • Sadiq Kahn, the Mayor of London, declares a "major incident" in London, where he says COVID is "out of control".[31]
    • Two UK's two headteachers' unions, the NAHT and ASCL, have expressed concern at the number of children attending school during lockdown and called for limits; school attendance is at 50% in some areas.[32]
    • An England-wide advertising campaign launches on television, fronted by Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty, urging people to stay at home and act as though they have COVID.[33]
    • The Telegraph reports that GP surgeries are being offered £1,000 to cancel appointments for the second COVID inoculation so that more first inoculations can be done, and are also being given a script for dealing with angry patients.[34]
    • With lockdown and school closures in force, it is reported that referrals for children with mental health problems have reached a record high.[35]
  • 10 January –
    • Regular rapid testing for people without COVID symptoms are to be made available throughout England in the coming week.[36]
    • As it is reported that 130,000 letters have been sent out so far inviting people to regional vaccination hubs for a COVID vaccine, a number of people aged over 80 have questioned why they have been asked to attend venues that can be as much as a 30–45 minute drive from home when they have been asked to shield.[37]
  • 12 January –
    • Home Secretary Priti Patel urges people to "play [their] part" in following COVID rules, and says she will back the police in enforcing them.[38]
    • A leaked memo warns that hospitals in Birmingham are "in a position of extremis" as COVID cases in the city rise, with 200 doctors set to be redeployed to the intensive care unit of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.[39]
    • It is reported that London's Nightingale Hospital has reopened and is taking COVID patients.[40]
    • Downing Street has defended Prime Minister Boris Johnson for taking a seven-mile bike ride, which it says complied with COVID regulations. The trip came to light after Johnson was spotted cycling in Olympic Park.[41]
  • 13 January – In a letter to the education watchdog Ofqual, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson suggests that GCSE, AS and A Level students could be asked to sit mini-exams in order to help their teachers decide "deserved grades".[42]
  • 14 January – Ambulance and COVID vaccination services in Yorkshire are hampered by heavy snow.[43]
  • 15 January –
    • Professor Chris Whitty forecasts that hospital admissions will peak in the next seven to ten days.[44]
    • A small number of intensive care patients with COVID are moved from hospitals in London to Newcastle Upon Tyne, it is reported.[45]
    • Police charge a 33-year-old man with fraud and common assault after he is alleged to have administered a fake COVID vaccine to a 92-year-old woman then charged her £160 in December 2020.[46]
    • Proposals published jointly by the Department for Education and Ofqual suggest GCSE and A Level results could be published in early July in 2021 rather than August as in previous years.[47]
  • 16 January –
    • Former RAF Flight Sergeant Louis Godwin, 95, becomes the first person to receive a COVID vaccination at a vaccination centre established in Salisbury Cathedral.[48]
  • 17 January –
    • Speaking to Sky News's Sophy Ridge on Sunday, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab says the government's target is to offer every adult their first dose of COVID vaccine by September, with some lockdown restrictions being eased by March.[49]
    • The UK government announces a financial support package for airports in England, which is scheduled to begin by the end of January.[50]
    • NHS England Chief Executive Sir Simon Stevens says that 140 COVID injections are being given each minute, a rate four times greater than the number of cases being detected.[51]
    • In a letter to the UK government, a group of London-based businessmen call for financial support for the rail firm Eurostar.[52]
    • The next phase of the COVID vaccination programme is announced, with people aged 70 and over, as well as those clinically extremely vulnerable, to begin receiving offers of vaccine over the forthcoming week.[53]
  • 18 January –
  • 19 January – Figures released by the Office for National Statistics suggest that as many as one in eight people, or 5.4 million people, had been infected with COVID by December 2020.[56]
  • 20 January –
    • The government announces that the rollout of daily mass testing in secondary schools as an alternative to self-isolation will be paused because the benefits of it are unclear following the emergence of the new variant of COVID.[57][58]
    • 24-hour vaccination schemes are piloted at hospitals in Birmingham and Nottingham.[59]
  • 21 January –
    • At a Downing Street Press Conference, Home Secretary Priti Patel announces that fines of £800 for anyone attending a house party of more than 15 people will be introduced in England from the following week.[60]
    • Education Secretary Gavin Williamson says that schools will be given two weeks notice before they return, but that he cannot say when this will be, though he hopes they will be open again before Easter.[61]
    • Pulse oximeters, which measure the oxygen level in the body, are being rolled out to patients at high risk of COVID, in a bid to detect the silent hypoxia element of the virus. The oximeter measures the level of oxygen in the blood.[62]
    • Prime Minister Boris Johnson says it is "too early" to say whether lockdown restrictions can be lifted in the spring.[63]
  • 22 January –
  • 24 January –
    • Police have issued £15,000 in fines after 300 people attended a rave beneath a railway arch in London.[66]
    • Six COVID test centres across the West Midlands are temporarily closed after the area is hit by heavy snowfall.[67]
  • 25 January –
    • A number of Conservative MPs, including Robert Halfon, chair of the House of Commons Education Select Committee, have urged the government to set out its strategy for reopening schools in England as concerns grow about the impact closures are having on children's education.[68] In response, Prime Minister Boris Johnson says the government will give an update on when schools can reopen "as soon as we can".[69]
    • Health Secretary Matt Hancock says there are early signs that COVID restrictions are working, but that it is "difficult to put a timeline" on when they can be lifted.[70]
  • 26 January – Fines of £200 are to be given to 31 Metropolitan Police officers who broke COVID rules by having a haircut; two officers who hired ta barber to give the haircuts are to face misconduct investigations.[71]
  • 27 January – Prime Minister Boris Johnson tells the House of Commons it will not be possible for schools to return in England after February half-term, but that he is hopeful it can begin to happen from 8 March. A final decision will depend on meeting vaccination targets, and schools will get two weeks notice before returning.[72]
  • 29 January –
  • 30 January – Health bosses in Nottinghamshire have apologised after Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Clinical Commissioning Group sent out letters to critically vilnerable children inviting them for COVID vaccinations.[76]
  • 31 January – Dr Susan Hopkins, head of strategy at Public Health England, says England's lockdown should be eased "very slowly, very cautiously".[77]

February 2021[edit]

  • 1 February –
    • NHS England confirms that every older care home resident in England has been offered a COVID vaccine.[78]
    • Health Secretary Matt Hancock confirms that around 80,000 residents over the age of 16 in areas of Surrey, London, Kent, Hertfordshire, Southport and Walsall are to be asked to take tests for the South African COVID-19 variant after 11 cases were identified that could not be linked to travel.[79]
  • 2 February –
    • Health Secretary Matt Hancock tells the House of Commons people living in areas singled out for enhanced testing for the South African COVID variant should get tested and stay at home unless it is essential to go out. Hancock also tells Parliament that Liverpool and Bristol are also areas of interest for new variants.[80]
    • Figures published by the Department for Education show that 1.2 million school pupils (roughly 15% of the school population) were at school on 28 January, a rise from 14% the previous week. The increase in numbers comes from primary pupils and those attending special schools.[81]
  • 3 February – Hampshire Constabulary and Sussex Police have issued a Community Protection Notice against a 30-year-old woman prohibiting her from visiting hospitals in Hampshire and Sussex without an appointment after she filmed empty hospital corridors and posted the footage online.[82]
  • 4 February – It is reported that teaching staff in London have been able to book and receive COVID vaccinations meant for health workers after a link to the booking site was forwarded to them via WhatsApp.[83]
  • 5 February – Police in Sheffield issue £34,000 worth of fines following a student party involving 150 people at a halls of residence.[84]
  • 6 February –
    • Testing for the South African COVID variant begins in Worcestershire after cases were discovered there with no apparent link to international travel.[85]
    • Fourteen adults are fined a collective total of more than £11,000 after attending a first birthday party, Nottinghamshire Police have confirmed.[86]
  • 7 February – Companies that employ over 50 people and whose employees cannot work from home are now eligible for lateral flow tests. The tests had previously only been available to firms with a workforce of 250 or more.[87]
  • 8 February –
    • Surge testing is to be introduced to parts of Manchester after four cases of a mutated version of the B17 strain were found in two unconnected households in the city.[88]
    • Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jonathan Van-Tam urges people aged 70 and over who have not received a COVID-19 vaccination to contact the NHS "without delay".[89]
    • Sir Kevan Collins, England's newly appointed Education Recovery Commissioner, says that school pupils will need extra hours of learning, sport, music and drama to make up for education missed because of the pandemic.[90]
    • Heavy snow brings disruption to the vaccination process, with centres in the South East and East Anglia forced to close temporarily because of the adverse weather.[91]
  • 9 February –
    • Jonathan Van-Tam, England's Deputy Chief Medical Officer, warns people against booking summer holidays abroad in 2021, suggesting "the more elaborate your plans are for summer holidays... the more you are stepping into making guesses about the unknown".[92]
    • Head teachers leaders have warned against giving school pupils longer hours and shorter holidays as a way of catching up with missed education.[93]
  • 10 February – Four councils in England – Eastbourne, Bexley, Luton and Peterborough – are being given emergency funding to balance their books, Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick announces. Jenrick says that while COVID is to blame for the financial situation of some of the councils, others are in their predicament because of "very poor management".[94]
  • 11 February –
    • Figures published by NHS England indicate that in December 2020, 224,205 people had been waiting for 12 months or longer for routine hospital treatment, the highest number since April 2008.[95]
    • A new booking system is launched for the hotel quarantine scheme, but taken down again within minutes because of a "minor technical issue".[96]
    • Office for National Statistics figures show that 30,296 of the 50,888 COVID patients who died in England between January and November 2020 had a disability.[97]
  • 12 February –
    • Sir Simon Stevens, the Chief Executive of NHS England, says England is on course to offer the top four priority groups their first COVID vaccine by the target date of 15 February.[98]
    • The deadline to buy a property under the Help to Buy equity loans scheme is extended until the end of May amid concerns 16,000 sales could be at risk because of the COVID crisis.[99]
  • 13 February –
    • Prime Minister Boris Johnson says he is "optimistic" he will be able to set out "cautious" plans for reopening society later in the month.[100]
    • Heathrow Airport says there are "significant gaps" in the hotel quarantine scheme scheduled to begin on 15 February.[101]
    • A case of South African variant COVID is discovered in the Hampshire village of Bramley, requiring all residents over the age of 16 to participate in surge testing.[102]
    • The leaders of the Parliamentary COVID Recovery Group have written to Prime Minister Boris Johnson urging him to lift all COVID restrictions by the end of April.[103]
  • 14 February – Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab rejects calls by the COVID Recovery Group to give a date for when restrictions will be eased.[104]
  • 15 February –
    • People aged 65–69 and those aged 16–64 classed as clinically vulnerable are invited to book their COVID vaccinations as the programme is expanded beyond the top four priority groups.[105]
    • The Managed Quarantine Service begins: travellers entering the UK from or via "red list" countries must pay for 11 nights in a designated hotel.[106]
    • Trade unions have expressed their concern that "patchy" financial support for people self-isolating because of COVID-19 is leaving many facing financial hardship.[107]
    • A study conducted at the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust finds a lower take up of the vaccine among ethnic minority staff, with a 70.9% take up among white staff, compared to 58.5% of South Asian staff and 36.8% of black staff.[108]
  • 16 February –
    • An extra 1.7 million people are expected to be asked to join the 2.3 million already shielding from COVID-19 after the development of a new model that looks at other factors in addition to health, such as ethnicity, weight and deprivation. At least half of these extra people are yet to receive COVID vaccinations so will be prioritised for inoculation.[109]
    • Surge testing for the South African COVID variant is to be expanded in Surrey, Norfolk and Southampton, while testing for a mutation of the Kent variant will be expanded in Manchester.[110]
    • West Midlands Police confirm that four passengers arriving in the UK have been fined £10,000 for failing to declare their visit to a "red list" country.[111]
  • 17 February –
    • Prime Minister Boris Johnson says England's lockdown strategy will be led by "data not dates".[112]
    • Anne Longfield, the Children's Commissioner for England, calls for the government to focus on vulnerable children in plans to "build back better" after the pandemic.[113]
    • A woman from Scarborough, North Yorkshire, who deliberately coughed at police officers investigating a breach of COVID rules is sentenced to four months imprisonment by the town's magistrates.[114]
  • 18 February –
    • Imperial College London's React study has indicated COVID-19 infections in England have fallen by two-thirds since January, with an 80% drop in London.[115]
    • Data from NHS England suggests that 3 in 10 care home staff are yet to be vaccinated against COVID-19 despite being in one of the top priority groups.[116]
    • A man in his 30s with no underlying health conditions is offered a vaccine under the extremely clinically vulnerable category after an administrative error gave him a BMI reading of 28,000. The error, made by NHS Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Group, had meant the man's height was incorrectly recorded as 6.2 cm rather than 6 ft 2in.[117]
  • 19 February – A joint statement released by the UK's teaching unions suggests it would be "reckless" to reopen all schools for pupils in England on 8 March.[118]
  • 20 February – As part of plans to ease lockdown restrictions, care home residents will be allowed one visitor indoors from 8 March. They are asked not to hug or kiss, but hand holding will be permitted, and visitors must provide a negative COVID test and wear PPE during the visit.[119]
  • 21 February – The organiser of a church group meeting that took place in a car park in Nottinghamshire is fined £10,000 by Nottinghamshire Police for breach of COVID regulations.[120]
  • 22 February –
    • Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveils a four-step plan for ending coronavirus restrictions in England by 21 June. Subject to four tests on vaccines, infection rates and new variants being met, the plan will include the following:
      • Schools and colleges will reopen on 8 March, with outdoor schools activities allowed; universities will return at a later time:
      • Outdoor gatherings of up to six people or two households will resume from 29 March, along with grassroots sports:
      • Non-essential shops, hairdressers, gyms and outdoor hospitality will resume on 12 April:
      • Two households will be able to mix indoors, with the rule of six applying to pub settings from 17 May:
      • Legal limits on social contact to be lifted by 21 June:
    • Speaking in the House of Commons, Johnson describes the plan as "cautious but irreversible" and something that will be led by "data not dates", further adding that there is "no credible route to a zero-Covid Britain nor indeed a zero-Covid world".[121]
    • A mass testing programme is announced for all secondary schools in England, with home testing carried out twice a week.[122]
  • 24 February –
    • Education Secretary Gavin Williamson announces £700m of spending to help pupils catch up with missed study, saying that no child should have their prospects "blighted by the pandemic".[123]
    • The organisers of the Reading and Leeds Festivals say they are "confident" the event can go ahead in 2021 following the announcement of the easing of lockdown restrictions in England.[124]
  • 25 February – The exams watchdog Ofqual confirms the results for GCSEs and A Levels whose exams are cancelled because of COVID-19 will be decided by schools using a combination of teacher assessment, coursework and exams. Exam assessments will be available if required but will not be conducted under exam conditions, while results will be published earlier in August than usual to allow time for appeals.[125]
  • 26 February – Research at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, suggests the Pfizer–BioNTech vaccine helps to slow the spread of COVID as well as preventing illness.[126]
  • 28 February – The families of schoolchildren are to be offered two free rapid COVID tests per week under plans to reopen schools in England.[127]

March 2021[edit]

  • 1 March – Two million people aged 60–63 begin receiving letters inviting them to book a COVID vaccination through the national booking service.[128]
  • 3 March –
    • Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveils the 2021 budget, which includes £1bn of funding for 45 areas of England to aid in their recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.[129]
    • Jamila Azad, a Labour Party councillor in Oxfordshire, is suspended by her party after claiming on social media to have received a COVID-19 vaccine from a private doctor.[130] She subsequently has the party's whip withdrawn.[131]
  • 4 March – People living in the TS19 postcode area of Stockton-on-Tees are urged to get tested for COVID-19 after evidence of the South African variant was found there.[132]
  • 5 March – The BBC reports that some people with asthma are being refused priority vaccination status if they have not recently been to hospital.[133]
  • 6 March –
    • People aged 56–59 begin receiving letters inviting them to book a COVID-19 vaccine. Over 18 million people in England have had their first vaccine, roughly a third of the population.[134]
    • The actor Laurence Fox announces plans to run for Mayor of London in the forthcoming election on a platform of lifting lockdown measures a month earlier than planned.[135]
  • Education Secretary Gavin Williamson tells the BBC ministers are considering introducing shorter summer holidays and longer school days to help schoolchildren catch up on missed work.[136]
  • 8 March –
    • People wishing to travel overseas are required to complete a "Declaration to Travel" document to prove they are authorised to travel.[137]
    • Concerns are raised that secondary school pupils could be incorrectly told they have COVID after the government says that a positive test done at school can not be overridden by a better quality lab test.[138]
    • The network of NHS Nightingale hospitals are to close from April, it is announced, with the hospitals in London and Sunderland remaining open as vaccination centres.[139]
  • 10 March – Since the return of schools in England, reports have emerged of children being asked to self-isolate following incorrect positive Rapid COVID test results which are later proven to be wrong by a PCR test giving a negative result. Parents have warned the situation is "ruining" the return to school, while experts argue children finding themselves in this situation are being unfairly punished.[140]
  • 11 March –
    • A further four cases of the Brazilian variant COVID are found in England, three in South Gloucestershire and one in Bradford. All are linked to previous cases identified in the UK.[141]
    • Health Secretary Matt Hancock announces that homeless people and those sleeping rough will be prioritised for COVID vaccines alongside those aged between 16 and 64 with underlying health conditions.[142]
  • 16 March – School attendance figures for the first week of the return of schools in England show attendance to be almost at pre-pandemic levels, with 95% of pupils at primary school and 89% at secondary school.[143]
  • 17 March –
    • People in England aged 50 and over are now invited to book their COVID vaccination.[144]
    • A letter from NHS England to local health organisations warns of a "significant reduction in the weekly supply" of COVID vaccines from the end of March. Health Secretary Matt Hancock describes the correspondence as a "standard" letter, though it is reported fewer AstraZeneca vaccinations will be available than anticipated.[145]
  • 18 March – Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirms he will receive his first vaccination the following day, and urges people who are invited to get a vaccine to do so.[146]
  • 20 March – Thousands of people attend an anti-lockdown march in London, at which 33 arrests are made, mainly for breaches of COVID regulations.[147]
  • 23 March – The "steps" regulations are published to coincide with the end of the "stay at home" order on 29 March. Measures include a £5,000 fine for unapproved travel outside England.[148]
  • 24 March – Prime Minister Boris Johnson says that pubgoers could be asked to provide a vaccine certificate by landlords, but that whether to do so would be left up to individual publicans.[149]
  • 26 March – The UK government announces that shops in England will be able to apply for permission to trade from 7am to 10pm from Mondays to Saturdays when non-essential retailers reopen on 12 April.[150]
  • 27 March –
    • Addressing the Conservative Party's virtual spring forum, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said that despite a surge of COVID cases in Europe, there is nothing the UK's data to dissuade him "from continuing along our roadmap to freedom".[151]
    • Rapid home testing kits are to be offered to companies in England with more than 10 employees from 6 April, and where it is not possible to perform on-site testing.[152]
  • 28 March – Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden says the government's plans to ease lockdown measures are on track and the "last thing in the world" it wants is another lockdown, but that dates "could be delayed if the situation deteriorates".[153]
  • 29 March – Movement restrictions are loosened by the first phase of the "Steps" regulations, allowing two households or six people to meet outside. Weddings with up to six people are also permitted again. Prime Minister Boris Johnson urges people to be cautions as COVID remains a threat.[154]
  • 31 March – People are urged to exercise caution following two days of extremely warm weather that have coincided with the easing of lockdown restrictions in England, and resulted in people descending on parks and beaches.[155]

April 2021[edit]

  • 1 April – UKHospitality criticises new rules in place for pubs, bars and restaurants when they reopen on 12 April that will require everybody to sign in while limiting visits to the bar to one person from each group. UKHospitality says it will place extra burdens on pubs and staff, and may discourage people from visiting hospitality venues.[156]
  • 2 April –
    • Campaigners launch legal action against the UK government over guidelines that ban care home residents over the age of 65 from taking trips outside the home.[157]
    • Police break up a Good Friday service at Christ the King RC Church on London's Balham High Road following breaches of COVID rules, such as people not socially distancing or wearing face coverings. A video of officers addressing the congregation is posted online.[158]
  • 3 April –
    • The UK government announces that care home residents will be allowed two regular visitors indoors from 12 April, while babies and children will also be allowed. Visitors will be required to provide a negative COVID test and wear PPE during the visit.[159]
    • The UK government confirms that a COVID passport system will be trialled at a comedy evening at Liverpool's Hot Water Comedy Club on 16 April and continue at other events through to mid-May, while a "traffic light" system will indicate the level of risk posed by different countries once foreign travel returns.[160]
  • 4 April – A 2021 FA Cup Semi-Final match on 18 April, the Carabao Cup Final on 25 April and the 2021 FA Cup Final on 15 May will all be trialled with spectators as part of plans for the return of large events, with the games attended by 4,000, 8,000 and 21,000 respectively. The matches may also be part of trials for the COVID passport scheme.[161]
  • 5 April –
    • Everybody in England is to be given access to two free rapid flow tests each week from Friday 9 April.[162]
    • Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirms that pubs, restaurants, hairdressers, gyms and non-essential shops can reopen from Monday 12 April.[163]
  • 9 April –
    • Philippines, Pakistan, Kenya and Bangladesh are added to the "redlist" of countries from where travel to England is banned, with travellers refused entry if they have visited those countries in the preceding ten days.[164]
    • Transport Secretary Grant Shapps says that people in England can start thinking about taking foreign holidays in summer 2021, but that the cost of COVID tests needs to be driven down.[165]
  • 11 April – Addressing the congregation of Christ the King RC Church following Sunday Mass, one of the Met Police officers who broke up a Good Friday service says that the police deeply regret the hurt caused by their actions.[166]
  • 12 April – Surge testing is implemented in south London following the discovery of a significant cluster of South African variant COVID.[167] The outbreak is believed to stem from an individual who returned from Africa in February. The areas affected by the outbreak are still allowed to relax COVID rules.[168]
  • 13 April –
    • Rollout of the Moderna COVID vaccine begins in England.[169]
    • The UK government says that students will be allowed to return to university campuses in England "no earlier than 17 May".[170]
  • 14 April –
    • Surge testing is extended to the Southwark and Barnet areas of London amid concerns about the South African COVID variant.[171]
    • Care home staff in England may be required to have a COVID vaccine under new plans being considered by the UK government.[172]
  • 15 April – Figures from NHS England indicate that 4.7 million people were waiting for routine operations and procedures in February 2021, the largest waiting list numbers since records began in 2007. Of those, 388,000 had waited for more than a year, while two million operations took place through January and February 2021, while the health service was under pressure because of the pandemic.[173]
  • 18 April –
    • On the day the FA Cup semi-final between Leicester City and Southampton is held at London's Wembley Stadium as a pilot event with 4,000 spectators, it is confirmed that an outdoor gig will be held in Liverpool's Sefton Park on 2 May with near-normal conditions. 5,000 people will be allowed to attend the event without face coverings or social distancing rules, but must provide a negative COVID test beforehand.[174]
    • NHS Providers have warned that the huge baclog of operations built up during the pandemic could take five years to clear.[175]
    • A gig in Manchester's Platt Fields Park due to be given by rapper AJ Tracy is cancelled shortly before it is scheduled to start because of the volume of people who turn up. Its organisers are subsequently fined £10,000 for a breach of COVID restrictions.[176]
  • 23 April – Philip Hollobone, MP for Kettering tells the House of Commons there is "widespread outrage" over Northamptonshire Police's decision not to charge anyone in connection with a funeral in Kettering attended by 150 people in November 2020. A man was originally charged with breaching COVID regulations over the funeral, but the charges have since been dropped.[177]
  • 24 April – An estimated 10,000 people attend an anti-lockdown protest at London's Hyde Park; eight police officers are injured while trying to disperse protestors and five arrests are made.[178]
  • 26 April –
    • With around two thirds of people in England aged 45–49 having received their first COVID vaccine, the programme is rolled out to those aged 44, roughly another half a million people.[179]
    • Organisers of the Tramlines Festival at Sheffield's Hillsborough Park, confirm the event will go ahead from 23–25 July, with 35,000 people expected to attend each day.[180]
  • 27 April –
    • Adults aged 42 and over are invited to book their first COVID vaccine.[181]
    • The City of London Corporation announces plans to convert unused office space into housing in a bid to revitalise the area following the COVID crisis, with plans for 1,500 homes by 2030.[182]
  • 29 April –
    • Figures published by NHS Test and Trace show COVID COVID infection rates have fallen to their lowest in England since September 2020.[183]
    • Sir Simon Stevens confirms he will leave the post of Chief Executive of NHS England at the end of July and become a peer in the House of Lords.[184]
  • 30 April –
    • Adults aged 40 and over are invited to book their first COVID vaccination.[185]
    • Clubbers have gathered at a venue in Liverpool for the first nightclub event to be staged as part of trials for mass gatherings. The two-day event is expected to be attended by 6,000 ticketholders who are required to take COVID tests before and after attending, but can attend without face coverings and observing social distancing requirements.[186]
    • Surge testing takes place in parts of east London following the discovery of two cases of South African variant COVID-19.[187]

May 2021[edit]

  • 1 May – Government scientist Professor Sir Mark Walport urges people to be "patient" ahead of the next planned relaxation of COVID rules on 17 May.[188]
  • 2 May – Bristol's annual Grand Iftar community event is held online due to the coronavirus pandemic. The meal, which represents the breaking of fast at sunset during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, is held in the city's Easton district and attended by 6,000 people.[189]
  • 3 May –
    • It is reported the government is planning to lift the 30 people limit at funerals from 17 May, meaning an unlimited number of mourners can attend so long as they can socially distance safely. The number permitted at weddings will rise from 15 to 30 on the same day.[190]
    • Prime Minister Boris Johnson suggests there is a "good chance" England's 1m social distancing rule can be scrapped from 21 June.[191]
  • 4 May – Care home residents are permitted to leave their residence for low-risk trips such as walks or garden visits without the need to self-isolate for 14 days afterwards.[192][193]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

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  165. ^ "Covid-19: People can start thinking about foreign travel - Shapps". 9 April 2021. Retrieved 9 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  166. ^ "Covid: Police 'regret' over halting church Good Friday service". 11 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  167. ^ "Covid: South African variant in Wandsworth and Lambeth surge test areas". 12 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  168. ^ "Covid: South Africa variant surge probably due to person travelling from Africa". 13 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  169. ^ "Covid-19: England gets third jab as Moderna rollout begins". 13 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  170. ^ "Students returning to university in England from 17 May". 13 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  171. ^ "Covid-19: London surge testing extended over variant cases". 14 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  172. ^ "Covid jab could be required for England care home staff". 14 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  173. ^ "4.7 million waiting for operations in England". 15 April 2021. Retrieved 15 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  174. ^ "Covid: Blossoms to headline 'near-normal' gig trial". 18 April 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  175. ^ Hennessey, Ted (18 April 2021). "Huge patient care backlog 'could take up to five years to clear'". www.standard.co.uk. Retrieved 18 April 2021. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  176. ^ "AJ Tracey: Gig organisers fined £10k for Covid rule breach in Manchester". 19 April 2021. Retrieved 19 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  177. ^ "Covid-19: MP claims 'outrage' at dropped charge for 150-guest funeral". 23 April 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  178. ^ "Eight officers injured policing anti-lockdown protest in London". The Guardian. 24 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  179. ^ "Covid-19: Vaccine rollout in England extends to 44-year-olds". 26 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  180. ^ "Tramlines: Sheffield music festival planning to run in 2021". 26 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  181. ^ "Covid-19: Vaccine offered to 42-year-olds in England". 27 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  182. ^ "City of London to convert offices into homes in post-Covid revamp". 27 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  183. ^ "Covid-19: NHS England boss to quit and India elections go ahead despite deaths". 29 April 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  184. ^ "NHS England boss Stevens to step down this summer". 29 April 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  185. ^ "Covid-19 vaccine offered to people aged 40 and over in England". 30 April 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  186. ^ "Covid: UK clubbers return to Liverpool for trial night". 30 April 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  187. ^ "Coronavirus: Surge testing in Redbridge after South African variant found". 30 April 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  188. ^ "Covid-19: Scientist urges patience before 17 May lockdown relaxation". 1 May 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  189. ^ "Bristol Ramadan: Easton Grand Iftar moves online due to Covid". 3 May 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  190. ^ "Covid-19: No limit at funerals in England from 17 May". 2 May 2021. Retrieved 2 May 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  191. ^ "Covid: 1m plus rule could end from 21 June, says Johnson". 3 May 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  192. ^ "Covid: Care home isolation rule axed for low-risk trips in England". 1 May 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  193. ^ https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-56977779
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