Covid-19: 'Relief' as some NI businesses throw open the shutters

Belfast barber shop Sheer Bliss was one of the businesses able to reopen on Friday

It's been a frustrating few months for businesses in Northern Ireland with another lockdown having been imposed after Christmas.

However, the doors of hairdressers, beauty salons and outdoor visitor attractions have been opening again on Friday as part of lockdown easing measures agreed this month.

Driving lessons and tests are also back while competitive outdoor sport, organised by a club or individuals but without spectators, can also resume on Friday, allowing most teams to return to full training.

BBC News NI has been speaking to business owners and others who have had Friday 23 April marked on their calendar for some time.

After four months with the shutters down, Gillian Herron is looking forward to seeing what has happened to her customers' hair.

The owner of the Hair Lounge in Bangor, County Down, said the reopening was going to be a "big change".

"We are quite a large salon so we are very, very lucky in that we're able to space our clients out," she told the BBC's Good Morning Ulster programme.

"So we haven't had to put screens up as such."

Hairdressers across Northern Ireland opened up on Friday to customers who have been waiting since Christmas

In the north-west, a region where there have been concerns about a rising Covid-19 infection rate, barber Paddy Burns said he was delighted to be reopening.

He was met by a queue of clients outside his shop in Londonderry on Friday morning.

"The feeling is good because more a lot of people have now had the jag they are feeling a bit more confident about coming out," he said.

Social distancing and Covid-19 safety measures were in place in Paddy Burns' barbershop on Friday morning

"It was good to see a crowd outside this morning - there was a bit of a cheer for me as I came down the street."

In Strabane, County Tyrone, salon owner Amy Mahon said reopening could not have come soon enough.

"It's been really tough - it's turned out to be just under four months," she told BBC Radio Foyle.

"You miss your clients so much so I'm really looking forward to getting back open.

"For some of my clients this hour might be the only hour of the week they get to themselves, like busy mummies working full-time.

"It's about relaxation, it just makes you feel better about yourself."

Back to the great outdoors

Likewise, it has been a tough few months for Martin McMullan, a director of the Life Adventure Centre in Castlewellan, County Down.

With the weather improving in recent weeks, the business has had to turn down growing demand for outdoor activities.

Martin McMullan from Life Adventure Centre said there was a pent-up demand for outdoor activity

"It's been difficult for a business because we haven't been able to do what we do," said Mr McMullan.

Bicycle hire would be the first thing to return, he said, and he hoped to offer water sports once shower and changing facilities could reopen - something which was expected within days.

• NI hairdressers and outdoor attractions to reopen

• What you need to know about NI's lockdown easing

"People want to get out, they want to enjoy the great outdoors and especially whenever the sun is out.

"We are really looking forward to being able to get people back out again."

Lindy Birse, the owner of the Ark Open Farm near Newtownards, County Down, said for small businesses "it is going to take years for them to recover from the length of lockdowns that we've had".

The return of outdoor activity means her farm is welcoming back families and giving them a chance to interact with the animals on the farm.

Lindy Birse says it is important that children can socialise in a way they have not been able to during lockdown

"Little tiny children that have been born in lockdown haven't had a chance to go and enjoy themselves and learn about the world around them," said Ms Birse.

"It is so important for kids to get out, to get socialised again, to enjoy the great outdoors and to learn about their environment."

Back at the wheel

Driving instructors and their pupils are also back on the road on Friday.

Gavin Sinclair, a driving Instructor and chair of the Northern Ireland Approved Instructor Council, said while he was happy after the frustrating year just past.

"Even back in December we were open for a week before we were shut back down again," he said.

"It's not fair for instructors and their businesses but it's not fair for the learner drivers either that are constantly spending money trying to get back to doing their test.

"Instructors get back to work and then everything is shut back down again.

"I think right now there is a period of elation that we're back to work but definitely a bit of hesitancy that maybe it's not going to last too long either."

'Great to see the kids back out'

Friday is also a big day for sports teams, which can get back to training in a more normal manner.

Roisin Walsh from Belfast Harlequins Hockey Club said the expanded numbers allowed at training meant the club's teams could play against each other.

"Of course still being mindful of the restrictions, we are very excited," she said.

"I think we'll have a load of girls out here - no more than 100 and definitely a lot fewer than 100 - but we will have them out here this evening."

Mike Scott from Ulster Hockey, the governing body for the sport in Northern Ireland, said it had been "a long year".

"It is just great to see the kids back out, the adults back out, hear the noise of the balls hitting the backboard," he said.

"We hope we are going to get a full return without going backwards again."