Plan B guidance – what has changed and what it means for housing associations

In early December, the government announced the implementation of its Plan B for containing and managing the spread of the Omicron variant of coronavirus in England. As part of this, a handful of broad measures came into force and still apply:

• Face coverings are required by law in some public settings (advisable when entering into someone’s home for instance).
• Office workers who can work from home should do so.
• Certain venues and events are required to check the Covid status of customers (via Covid NHS pass or other accepted means).

From 11 January, people in England who receive a positive lateral flow test will be required to self-isolate immediately but won’t need to take a confirmatory PCR test.

It is worth pointing out some key pieces of guidance which affect housing associations that have not changed as a result of the introduction of Plan B:

• Eviction notice periods in England returned to pre-pandemic lengths on 1 October 2021 having been tapered down last year. They have not changed since.
• Repairs and maintenance work in residents’ homes can continue as normal. The only exception being that if the household is isolating, works are only permitted if they are addressing a direct risk to safety.
• Outside of household isolation periods, there are no government restrictions on social mixing. Official guidance continues to point to ventilation and discretionary mask wearing as the best precautions to take when mixing with others indoors.

For full, up to date resources, please see our coronavirus resource page.