Joshua Williams, from Ladywood, Birmingham, has told us he thinks the new restrictions are "a little bit too late" and questioned what many have seen as a contradiction.

The 22-year-old, a masters student at the University of Birmingham, said: "I’m no longer allowed to see mum or boyfriend, but can work in a bar in close proximity to hundreds of people."

Image source, Joshua Williams

Mr Williams added: "I can get to that job via public transport but that is apparently lower risk than seeing those close to me."

A Birmingham City University student says the new guidelines mean she will be separated from her family and boyfriend.

Alex Banks, 19, lives in a house share in the city, while her family live in Walsall and her boyfriend is at university in Derby.

During lockdown she stayed at home and said this would be a totally different experience.

"It will probably be quite tough," she said.

"I am further away this time around"

Image source, Google

Rob Mayor
Political reporter, BBC Radio WM

The new restrictions are designed to stop the transmission of the virus in people’s homes which is thought to be behind the increase in cases across the West Midlands conurbation.

Image source, PA Media

We’ll know if it’s working if the infection rate starts to drop over the next few weeks.

Health officials have described this as a critical moment in the battle against the virus and hospitals are again starting to see small numbers of seriously ill Covid-19 patients.

Police will move from an approach of engagement to enforcement of the rules, but with more than 1.6 million people now covered by these restrictions, there will have to be an element of trust that they can be followed.

Bethany Kendle is due to move back to Birmingham on Saturday for a new job after spending lockdown with her parents in Hertfordshire.

The 22-year-old, who celebrates her 23rd tomorrow, said she had planned to see old friends from her time at The University of Birmingham and invite them around to see her new place over the next week, but these plans would now have to be cancelled.

“It’s frustrating, everybody was just starting to spread their wings and it’s all taken away again,” she said.

“I’m living in a flat with two friends from university, so it’s not the end of the world,” she said.

She added she was “so glad” at least to not be alone in a household bubble when she returns to the West Midlands.

Image source, Bethany Kendle

Bethany, who graduated earlier this year with a degree in politics, said she found the rules “quite vague”.

“Anyone I speak to, people don’t really know what’s going on,” she said. “It’s a difficult line to draw, especially when different parts of the country have different rules.”

With no firm timeline for how long the restrictions may be in place, Bethany also thinks this weekend may be her last chance to see her parents until Christmas.

“I’m just going to have to make the most of this weekend,” she said.

Here's a bit more detail on the new restrictions that have come into force in Birmingham, Sandwell and Solihull.

From Tuesday, residents in these areas will not be able to mix with other households, either indoors or outdoors, with the exception of people who are in their support bubble.

And this applies inside and outside the boundaries of those areas.

Image source, Getty Images

People can still go to shops, restaurants and other venues that are open, but mustn't do that with other households.

The reason for this, Birmingham City Council said, was that in shops and hospitality venues, there are strict safety measures in place and it's easier to pass on the virus at someone's house, "where people are more relaxed and less vigilant".

A Birmingham mother has said the new coronavirus guidance for the city "makes no sense".

Tamika Gill, head of the residents' association of a Druid's Heath tower block, which had been earmarked for demolition, said lockdown had been hard for her and her children.

"We had just started to get back to normality, the kids were in school

"Now we have got it and it is going to be taken away again."

Ms Gill questioned why households will not be able to socialise, while groups of 20-30 children will still be mixing at school.

"Kids can see their friends in the classroom, then come out can’t engage, how does that work?"

There's some scepticism about the effectiveness of the new coronavirus measures from people commenting on the BBC Midlands Facebook page, external.

Elizabeth Currell wrote: "Not sure how anyone thinks stopping people seeing their families is going to make any difference when they are still expected to go to work and can still go to the pub."

Emma Calloway commented: "I’m sorry, but I can’t go visit my mother in law who now lives on her own due to Covid, but my kids can go to school?"

And Diane Pettitt added: "Let's hope people adhere to this, but I’m sure some won’t."

People have "got complacent" since the easing of lockdown restrictions, said the leader of Sandwell Council.

The local authority area saw 140 cases in the most recent seven-day period which data is available for, up from 72 the previous week, said Councillor Maria Crompton

The largest proportion of cases are in people aged 20 to 40, she added.

Image source, Google

Ms Crompton said there was a higher rise in contamination within households and urged people to stay in their own homes or gardens.

But, she said there was a huge system in place to try to protect families.

"We need to be blunt, people have got complacent."

The leader of Birmingham City Council says he has asked for military help to collect tests for coronavirus in the city.

The authority has started a drop-and-collect service, understood to include a self-test at home which will be delivered to and collected from people struggling to get to testing sites.

Ian Ward said the authority was trying to recruit volunteers and also get military assistance to help with the system.

Image source, Getty Images

Rob England
BBC England Data Unit

Birmingham has the second highest coronavirus infection rate in England, standing at 85.4 cases per 100,000 people as of the week to 7 September.

The week before, it recorded a rate of 32 per 100,000.

According to government’s more local data, Birmingham is home to six of the top 10 neighbourhoods with the highest number of positive cases in England.

Many of these areas saw spikes in the latest week of available data, compared to the week previously – reflecting the overall trend for the city.

Springfield and Hall Green West, in the south-east of the city, had the most cases with 39, a sharp rise on the previous week, where only 11 were recorded.

Wake Green East and Moseley Bog, just south of Springfield, went from recording between 0-2 cases for the past four weeks, to 29 most recently.

Student Abby Stapleton is due to move into halls of residence in Birmingham this weekend and said the rise in cases had left her nervous.

Image source, Abby Stapleton

The 19-year-old from Coventry is studying psychology at Birmingham City University.

"For the minute it is not too strict, I'm still able to move around for things that are necessities, but I'm nervous over catching it, it is a lot higher than Coventry."

People in Birmingham, Sandwell and Solihull are being asked to "act responsibly" and obey the new coronavirus instructions.

But West Midlands Police Chief Constable Dave Thompson also said he appreciated it would be frustrating to see limits on socialising just when people were enjoying the chance to spend more time with friends and family.

He also said his officers would focus their attention on breaking up the largest and most flagrant breaches of the rules..

The rise in the number of coronavirus cases in Solihull in recent days has been "exceptional", the leader of its council has said.

Ian Courts also said it appeared the whole borough and all age groups had been affected and he believed people had relaxed with the easing of restrictions.

Solihull recorded 146 cases in the seven days to 8 September.

People in Birmingham have given a mixed reaction to the news the city will soon have tougher lockdown measures, after a sharp rise in coronavirus cases.

Further restrictions will be imposed from Tuesday, with the latest infection rate figure at 85 cases for every 100,000 people in the city.

Speaking before the announcement. one man told the BBC he welcomed the decision, but the local economy needed to be looked after.

“I think it would be a good idea, but I think they have to be absolutely clear and I think they have to protect business this time as well."

However, another man told the BBC it was confusing.

“It’s like, 'don’t go to work, but then catch buses to work' then 'don’t catch a bus to work'; it’s all confusing, people aren’t going to listen to that.”

The increase in coronavirus cases in Birmingham recently appears to have been driven by private interactions and workplaces, the leader of the city council has said.

Speaking at a West Midlands Combined Authority meeting, Labour's Ian Ward also said there had been a rise in the percentage of coronavirus cases among white people.

Mr Ward added the city was also seeing an increase in hospital admissions and care homes.

These new restrictions follow on from the lockdown announced in Leicester back in June, which delayed the reopening of non-essential businesses.

Those restrictions have since been eased, but residents remain banned from meeting other households in homes and gardens.

Image source, Getty Images

And at the end of July, the government announced similar restrictions in Greater Manchester, Lancashire and parts of West Yorkshire.

There, the rules also banned separate households from meeting each other at home after a spike in Covid-19 cases.

Restrictions on indoor venues such as skating rinks, conference centres and exhibition halls have been relaxed now.

Most recently, extra coronavirus restrictions have been introduced in Bolton, including only allowing takeaways and curtailing nightlife, after a rise in cases there.

Birmingham is home to six of the top 10 neighbourhoods with the highest number of positive cases in England, according to government’s more local data.

Image source, Reuters

Many of these areas saw spikes in the latest week of available data, compared to the week previously – reflecting the overall trend for the city.

Springfield and Hall Green West, in the south-east of the city, had the most cases with 39.

This was a sharp rise on the previous week, where only 11 were recorded.

Wake Green East and Moseley Bog, just south of Springfield, went from recording between 0-2 cases for the past four weeks, to 29 most recently.

The West Midlands Mayor Andy Street said while the decision to impose extra restrictions was ultimately made by the government, there had been "lots of local consultations".

And he said he had been been speaking to the Department of Health throughout the week.

Image source, Getty Images

Conservative Mr Street also said it was very important the message was clearly understood.

He said it was different to and more focused than the measures introduced in the national lockdown earlier this year.

There will be a ban on households mixing in Birmingham, Sandwell and Solihull from Tuesday, the West Midlands Mayor has said.

Andy Street says people are also being advised against meeting up before then as this has been identified as one of the key drivers of the coronavirus spread.

And he says the decision has been make in collaboration with local leaders.