First Minister Mark Drakeford has announced that a two-week, three-weekend ‘fire-break’ will begin in Wales at 6pm on Friday, 23 October and end on Monday, 9 November. This is designed to break the rapidly increasing spread of the coronavirus in the nation. The R number in Wales is currently 1.5 and intensive care units (ICUs) are full. The aim is to reduce the R rating to below 1, and this fire-break is introduced for a specific and limited period of time.
A meeting was convened of the Faith Communities Forum in Wales on the morning of the 19 October. Places of worship will be closed during this period, with the exemption of essential public services such as foodbanks. Non-essential shops, leisure facilities, community centre, libraries and recycling centres will close. Written guidance for places of worship will be published by the Welsh Government on Thursday.
All workers are to work from home other than critical workers and where working from home is not possible. Primary and special schools will reopen after half-term. Secondary years 7 and 8 will return after half-term, as will examination candidates. Learning from home will apply to others.
Regulations around funerals and weddings remain as they have been prior to this fire-break, in that the actual ceremonies are permitted. Places of worship should refer to their risk assessments in order to gauge the capacity of their buildings and therefore the allowable number of people attending ceremonies.
Discussions around arrangements for Remembrance Sunday on the 8 November are still taking place, and we will get back to churches on this. Organised local authority and British Legion events will be permitted.
