The decision to keep tier three restrictions across Warwickshire has been disappointing for businesses there.

Loxley's restaurant and wine bar in Stratford-upon-Avon said it had hoped it would move in to tier two, but general manager Jonathan Lea said: "We also understand that keeping people safe is a priority."

Image source, Google

Mr Lea also said the effect of coronavirus on the hospitality sector was "quite frankly, catastrophic".

"All we can hope is that things will improve and 2021 will prove better for our industry than 2020."

Residents in Herefordshire are being urged to "stay vigilant" as the government moves to relax coronavirus restrictions in the county.

Image source, Herefordshire Council

The area will move from tier two to tier one on Saturday following a review of the restrictions.

The county's acting director of public health Dr Rebecca Howell-Jones said “it is important that everyone remains committed to following the rules and going that extra mile to ensure the Covid-19 rates are kept as low as possible and most importantly that we protect our loved ones.

"The virus is still in our communities and infection rates can accelerate very quickly if people relax their behaviour."

Hereford racecourse recently reopened to spectators and today another meeting has been held there, with all the necessary social distancing in place.

Up until now, visitors have been asked to wrap up warm and watch the racing from the outdoor areas, but the move to tier one restrictions in Herefordshire would allow people to gather indoors again - in groups of up to six.

Image source, Tim Goode/PA Wire

The racecourse said it hadn't yet decided what changes to make as a result of this. The layout of the site and capacity of the indoor areas are also factors.

It said it would provide an update after reviewing the possibilities.

Image source, Tim Goode/PA Wire

Restrictions ease in Herefordshire, but stay the same everywhere else in the West Midlands.

Rules around Christmas have been relaxed and, despite a plea yesterday by the prime minister for restraint, look unlikely to be tightened in the next week.

Between 23 and 27 December up to three households are allowed to gather together in a "Christmas bubble" even in tier three areas.

They have to be the same households across that period, so you can't meet with two households on Christmas Even and a different two on Boxing Day.

Bubbles can meet in each others' homes, in places of worship or outdoors.

However, Boris Johnson yesterday said people should "think hard" before meeting friends and family.

A theatre that had hoped to put on live pantomime has now cancelled all performances after news it would be staying in tier three - the most severe restrictions.

More than 5,000 tickets have been sold for Jack and the Beanstalk at the Lichfield Garrick in Staffordshire.

It will now be recorded and broadcast online.

Other shows - Freddy the Teddy’s Christmas Feast and War Horse (live recording.) - are also cancelled.

Staffordshire will remain under tier three restrictions the Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced earlier.

In a statement, the theatre described the decision as "very disappointing", and said it would be contacting ticket-holders who would be given the option of alternative performances or refunds.

Across the West Midlands region as a whole, 20 out of 30 local authority areas saw a rise in their Covid-19 rate for the week ending 12 December.

Stoke-on-Trent continues to have the highest rate of new cases in the West Midlands, but saw it fall slightly from 232.0 per 100,000 people to 321.8.

The biggest percentage rise was Stratford-on-Avon, which saw its rate rise from 54.6 to 101.5.

Earlier, Birmingham City Council leader Ian Ward commented that local hospitals continued to be under pressure.

The city saw 2,380 new cases in the week up to 12 December, up from 2,201.

The MP for Rugby has said he is "very disappointed" that Warwickshire is not going to be moved down a tier.

Rates in the town rose in the week to 12 December to 176 per 100,000 population up from 108 the previous week.

He tweeted the decision would continue to have "serious consequenses" for the hospitality sector.

Facebook

Today's announcement on tiers has been generating a lot of comment on the BBC Midlands Facebook page too.

And a lot of people aren't happy.

Tim Jones commented: "My wife has been running a restaurant throughout this pandemic. They have spent money being Covid safe and run a tight ship, not one track and trace call, not one sickness nothing."

DJ Beaman wanted everywhere to be in tier three and wrote: "Don't make sense at all, they lower it and you watch be back to square one after Christmas again."

And lots of people have suspicions and conspiracy theories, Natasha Allmark suggested there may be political motivations and wrote: "Herefordshire and Somerset are Tory strongholds.Bristol North, South, and East are Tory target seats in 2024."

The decision to move Herefordshire in to tier one restrictions has been welcomed by the hospitality industry there.

It means people can now gather in restaurants, pubs, bars and other venues with people who aren't in their household, as long as they are in groups of up to six.

Image source, Google

Vernon Amor, the Managing Director of Wye Valley Brewery in Stoke Lacy said: "It's completely unexpected, but it's absolutely fantastic for pubs, hotels, bars restaurants in Herefordshire."

Hannah Richardson
BBC News education and social affairs reporter

The return to school in January will be staggered for secondary pupils in England, with some starting term online rather than in class, the BBC understands.

It aims to allow head teachers to set up a Covid testing scheme announced this week- but with exam-year pupils going back to start term as usual.

Image source, PA Media

The government insists this is not an extension to the school holidays and primary schools will not be affected by the move.

• Read more here

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Solihull remaining under tier three restrictions was "disappointing but understandable," said the council's leader.

Ian Courts said: “our numbers are bumpy, the numbers are going up in some areas, also we are surrounded by areas which are also seeing their numbers going up.”

He said he would continue to press for support for the sectors hard-hit by restrictions and said attention must now turn to managing a tricky Christmas period.

He said he knew many had had “a difficult year” but that residents would have to be “very, very careful” over the coming week or so.

“We don’t want a big spike after Christmas which will shut down everything.”

Birmingham MP Jack Dromey has spoken in the House of Commons to raise the case of community "champion" Jane Roach, from Castle Vale, whose father and sister died with Covid-19 within five days of each other.

They are among nearly 10,000 people in the West Midlands who have died from the virus, the Labour MP for Erdington said.

Image source, UK Parliament

He said Ms Roach wanted to know why the UK had suffered more deaths thanmany other countries and asked when an inquiry into the pandemic would be established.

In reponse, Health Secertary Matt Hancock said we were "constantly learning about how to do things better" and we were "learning more about the disease" all the time.

How times have changed.

Just a week ago, things looked good for Stratford-upon-Avon, if not the whole of Warwickshire to be downgraded to tier two.

West Midlands Mayor Andy Street even said a move to tier two for Birmingham and the Black Country lay "in the balance", even if Birmingham Council Leader Ian Ward poured cold water on that idea before Christmas.

Image source, PA Media

Since then Covid-19 rates have climbed in most parts of the West Midlands.

In Stratford-upon-Avon, the rate of new infections has almost doubled in a week.

The latest figures show there were 101.5 new infections per 100,000 people in the district for the week up to 12 December, up from 54.6.

Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Dudley, most of Staffordshire, most of Warwickshire and Coventry all saw their rates rise.

Birmingham's stay in tier three is "not surprising," said the council's leader.

Image source, Getty Images

Ian Ward said there was still a "great deal of pressure on the NHS across the city" and easing of restrictions over Christmas had the "potential to further exacerbate that situation".

"The start of the vaccination roll-out has given everyone hope, but the danger is far from over and Birmingham will only get out of these tough measures if we all continue to follow the rules to keep our families, friends and neighbours safe," he said.

"In the meantime, the ongoing restrictions are having a devastating impact on hospitality, arts and events businesses in Birmingham and it's now even more important for the government to provide urgent additional support."

There are some interesting comments on the tiers on the BBC Hereford and Worcester Facebook page today.

Chris Martin would have preferred to see Herefordshire remain in tier two, saying a move to tier one will "only send the message to our lunatics to run amok and be silly".

Claire Cook said she would like to see the restrictions tightened because, "then people might actually stick to the guidelines and not mix households at every opportunity".

Image source, Google

Sue Strutt suggested: "Why don't we just use our common sense and stop fussing about what the government is doing?"

And Patricia Clarke wrote: "We live in a village and both retired and to be honest nothing has really changed for us. My husband can golf and I walk the dogs and can see my daughter as she is my walking buddy. I go shopping once a week."

Local Democracy Reporting Service
Tom Davis

No change in Coventry’s tier placing is “not a surprise” given a gradual increase in coronavirus rates in the city, the council’s leader has said.

Image source, Coventry City Council

But George Duggins has placed doubt in whether the tier system has done enough to control the virus, urging the government to “look more carefully” at the policy.

Councillor Duggins said: "Once the rate started to go up it was not a surprise that we ended up in tier three especially with the warnings around Christmas.

“Very clearly the government are nervous about the policies they have in place around Christmas.

“Again, it is not clear how they have come to these decisions. It is not clear what numbers they are using. They have never made it clear where in the rate per 100,000 you have to be before you are put into a tier.

“Our numbers have never gone anywhere near 300 and have been around 150 recently and as low as 119 last week. We now remain in tier three and that could be for some time. "

A reminder what the tiers mean and what you can and cannot do.

Herefordshire's change of tiers means people living in the county will be able to meet up indoors from Saturday - up to the rule of six.

it'll be the first time they can do so since the start of the second lockdown.

The leader of Stratford-on-Avon says he is "bitterly disappointed" the area is set to remain under tier three measures.

Tony Jefferson said while the Conservative-run council had been supportive of measures the government had introduced to keep numbers down "the frustration against this decision still remains, despite being assured of being reviewed at a lower level".

In the seven days to 12 December Public Health England figures showed the area had a rate of 101 cases per 100,000 population up from 54 the previous week.

But, he added, the situation was "complex" and not just about the infections rate and falling cases.

He called on residents to "continue to follow the guidelines and help us to get out of tier three”.

Hereford and South Herefordshire MP Jesse Norman posted on Facebook the decision to move Herefordshire to tier one was "great news".

He said the decision was a "great tribute both to local people and businesses during a very difficult period - at a time when much of the country is, I am afraid, going the other way.

"We must do everything we can to stay in tier one by being careful over Christmas and long into 2021."

Image source, Jesse Norman/Facebook