Covid advice update for English bands – new Tier 4 effective from 20 December

The Government has announced new Tier 4 restrictions on 19 December, applicable from Sunday 20 December.

Brass Bands England (BBE) advises that, for those in Tier 4, no brass band activity should take place, including Carolling, performances and rehearsals.

We appreciate the difficulty that this will place on bands planning to go Carolling in the run up to Christmas, but Tier 4 restrictions have just been announced in response to the rise in virus levels in these areas. This advice will be updated should there be any changes in the Performing Arts Guidance from the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), although this is not expected to be available in time for the start of Tier 4 restrictions on 20 December.

Guidance for the performing arts, which is due to be updated to reflect Tier 4 changes, can be found here https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/performing-arts

The BBE guidance can be found at https://www.bbe.org.uk/what-we-do/covid-19-advice-guidance-and-resources on resuming activities including example risk assesments. We thank NewMoon Insurance Services, for their sponsorship of the BBE Covid advice through support of the Brass Band Emergency fund. Anyone wishing to support the fund can do so here https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/save-our-brass-bands-emergency-fund and bands wishing to apply for support from the fund should contact BBE on [email protected].

If anyone has questions on restarting or continuing banding activities, then please contact BBE on Facebook, which will be monitored while the BBE office is closed until 11 Jan.