Ripon residents urged to support their local businesses as Tier 2 restrictions are announced

Ripon will enter a higher tier of Covid-19 restrictions from December 2 as North Yorkshire was placed on High Alert by Health Secretary Matt Hancock.
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Stuart Martin, Current Harrogate District Mayor and Ripon City Councillor, has encouraged residents to keep positive and shop locally during what is set to be a tough December.

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Cllr Martin said: “This announcement is disappointing but not surprising given the R number in the area.

People living in Ripon have been urged to support their local businesses throughout the coming difficult months.People living in Ripon have been urged to support their local businesses throughout the coming difficult months.
People living in Ripon have been urged to support their local businesses throughout the coming difficult months.

“The coming weeks are going to be tough, but as members of the public we need to do whatever we can by supporting our local businesses and buying locally.

“Even if we can’t go out and shop, we need to ring up local businesses and organise delivery.”

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The majority of England will be in the two toughest levels of measures when the national lockdown ends next week.

With most of the country sitting alongside Ripon in tier 2, 21 local authority areas including Sheffield and Leeds will enter tier three, the highest level.

Differences between the tiers include limits on where households can meet up, meaning Ripon residents must obey the rule of six outdoors and avoid all indoor household mixing.

Care home visits are allowed in tier 2 if there are arrangements such as screens, pods and window visits put in place.

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Spectators can return to sports stadiums, with limits of 2,000 fans or 50 percent capacity, while grassroots sport can take place outdoors without restrictions but not indoors if there is interaction between different households.

The first review of the tier allocations will take place on December 16, with the potential for areas to move down a tier before Christmas if they are making progress in slowing the spread of the virus.

Cllr Martin added: “We can all be optimistic about the future in Ripon. If the vaccine is half as good as they say it is, then by early Spring we can start getting back to some form of normality.

“Covid-19 will be around for a long time, but in the new year we may be able to mix with our families and businesses can have the certainty they crave. Things will improve eventually.”