Cheshire residents urged to stick to new lockdown rules to help reduce spread of coronavirus

Cheshire Constabulary is urging residents to stick to the new lockdown rules in a bid to help reduce the spread of coronavirus.

A national lockdown was put in place across England on Thursday 5 November.

Residents must now stay at home when possible, only leaving when there is a reasonable excuse.

Households will also not be able to mix with anyone outside their household/bubble indoors or in private outdoor spaces such as gardens.

However people can still meet with one other person outside their household/bubble in a public open space such as a park or countryside.

Non-essential shops, leisure and entertainment venues must also now close.

There are exceptions to these restrictions, which can be found on the government website.

The new measures will be in place for four weeks until Wednesday 2 December when they will be reviewed by the government.

Assistant Chief Constable Jenny Sims said: “We have now been living with coronavirus restrictions in some form for a number of months and know that everyone has had to make sacrifices this year in a bid to save lives.

“The new lockdown restrictions are in place to keep us all safe.

“Despite this there are still a minority of people who are continuing to flout the rules.

“Now more than ever we must work together to help drive down the spread of the virus to help protect the NHS.

“In order to do this, we must all act responsibly and follow the restrictions which have been put in place.

“Our officers will continue to engage with the public in a fair manner, explain the restrictions that are in place and encourage people to do the right thing.

“However when there is blatant and repeat breaking of the rules, we will have no choice but to enforce in a bid to protect the wider public.”

Police and Crime Commissioner David Keane said: “During the course of the coronavirus crisis, it has been heart-warming to see the residents of Cheshire work to help reduce the spread of the virus.

“As we are entering a new lockdown, I know that the community spirit that we saw over the first few months of the Spring lockdown will continue.

“The rules are in place to protect our families and the NHS, please follow them and together we can help save lives.”

For more information on the new lockdown measures, please visit the government website.

Anyone looking to report a breach of the coronavirus legislation is urged to do so online via the Cheshire Police website.