We have taken a number of calls this week in relation to the rule of 6. So on behalf of the museum I would like to clarify this rule for you in relation to the museum opening and our location tours:
Your safety and wellbeing is our utmost priority, and we would like to provide some reassurance that the announcement about social gatherings limited to six people does NOT put an end to either the museum opening times and/or tours.
There is a distinction between what is allowed when privately and informally planned, compared to what a business can now safely and legally offer.
The new legal prohibition is designed to enable the authorities to crack down on privately and informally organised gatherings, where no social distancing or face coverings are being used or observed, and comes on the back of rises in positive tests among younger people.
Here is the important distinction from the guidance that applies to our tours and museum opening times.
Businesses and venues following COVID-19 secure guidelines can host larger groups. Premises or locations which are COVID-19 Secure will be able to hold more than 30 people, subject to their own capacity limits, although any individual groups should not interact with anyone outside of the group they are attending with.
In other words, group events are permitted when professionally organised by businesses who have made risk assessments and put in place good practices for COVID safety.
When booking our tours, you are grouped together in your own bubbles, and then socially distanced from the other members of that tour group. We are also asking for all tour participants and museum visitors to wear a face covering whether that be a mask, visor, or snood (unless medically exempt) both on our tours and within the museum itself.
We have robust COVID secure policies in place, and our risk assessments are constantly monitored with any changes made to comply with government guidance.
We have taken many measures to safeguard your visit, to ensure that all health and safety guidelines are met.
We apologise for the long message however, but we feel the need to make the distinction between what is legally permitted privately and what is permitted within a business setting based on the updated laws.
We are therefore pleased to be able to continue safely opening the museum and conducting our location tours.
