On Tuesday 29 March, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Sajid Javid, set out the next steps for living with COVID-19 in England from Friday 1 April. The Government has stated that the population now has much stronger protection against COVID-19 than at any other point in the pandemic. This means we can begin to manage the virus like other respiratory infections, thanks to the success of the vaccination programme and access to antivirals, alongside natural immunity and increased scientific and public understanding about how to manage risk.

The new Government guidance advises:

• the universal free COVID-19 tests offer ended on Friday 1 April. 
• regular asymptomatic testing is no longer recommended in any education or childcare setting.
• routine contact tracing has ended and contacts are no longer required to test daily for 7 days.
• adults and children are advised to get vaccinated if they have not done so already. 
• the legal requirement for close contacts who are not fully vaccinated to self isolate has been removed. 
• adults with the symptoms of a respiratory infection, and who have a high temperature or feel unwell, should try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people until they feel well enough to resume normal activities and they no longer have a high temperature.
• children and young people who are unwell and have a high temperature should stay at home and avoid contact with other people. They can go back to school, college or childcare when they no longer have a high temperature, and they are well enough to attend.
• adults with a positive COVID-19 test result should try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people for 5 days, which is when they are most infectious. For children and young people aged 18 and under, the advice will be 3 days.