Wolverhampton employers and businesses are being urged to make themselves familiar with the latest measures to guard against Covid-19 in their workplace.

The latest information takes account of changes to national guidance and learning from recent outbreaks of Covid-19 in settings across the country.

It also includes details of the new phone number that employers can call if they want support to get their employees booked in for a Covid-19 test. The Book a Test Team is available

between 9am - 4pm Monday to Friday on 01902 290244.

The following steps described below will help your setting stay open safely for your employees and your business.

Settings need to be particularly alert to:

• How employees travel to and from work avoiding car sharing outside

their household

• Staggering start, finish and break times

• Avoiding 'bunching' at communal areas like kitchens, clocking in stations

and lockers

• Cleaning touchpoints like door handles very regularly e.g. every hour

• The importance of notifying Public Health England if there are two or more cases in

the space of 14 days

Any workplace found to be operating dangerously could be closed down using powers given to local councils under the Coronavirus Act 2020. Businesses which would like support

with interpreting the latest guidance should contact the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Trade With Confidence team on 01902 552079 or via

tradewithconfidence.food@wolverhampton.gov.uk.

Councillor Jasbir Jaspal, the council’s Cabinet Member for Public Health and Wellbeing, said: "It is the responsibility of every business and employer to take all reasonable

measures to limit the risk of transmission of Covid-19 and keep their staff and customers safe.

“That means ensuring they are complying with the latest guidance from Public Health to maintain a safe workplace.

"All businesses in Wolverhampton need to act responsibly to limit the spread of Covid-19. The vast majority are doing an incredible job in the most difficult of circumstances

and I would like to thank them for their continuing efforts which will help us to avoid a local lockdown.”

The latest information and advice to help businesses operate in a Covid-secure manner can be viewed here:

https://bit.ly/3ij4qPi.

Black Country Chamber of Commerce Chief Executive, Corin Crane, added: “Businesses across Wolverhampton and the Black Country have shown incredible resilience, innovation and

flexibility in dealing with Covid-19 and the coming months are going to be a real challenge that I’m sure they will rise to.

“We need to do everything we can to keep our employees safe, supply chains flowing and the local economy moving.

“If at all possible, we need to avoid the type of restrictions we faced in March so it’s essential we follow these guidelines to prevent the disease from spreading further.”

Symptoms of Covid-19 include a fever, a new, continuous cough and loss or change to a person’s sense of taste and smell. People with symptoms, no matter

how mild, should immediately self-isolate and book a test by visiting www.nhs.uk/coronavirus

or calling 119.

Anyone who tests positive for Covid-19 will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace and will be asked to share information about people that

have been close contacts recently.

The latest information and guidance around coronavirus is available at

www.gov.uk/coronavirus and on the council’s own coronavirus pages at

www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/coronavirus. There’s lots of advice on how people can protect themselves and their families from coronavirus from the NHS at

www.nhs.uk/coronavirus.

The council’s Stay Safe, Be Kind campaign offers clear and simple advice about how people can help themselves, and how they can support others who may be particularly vulnerable

at this time. For more information, please visit www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/stay-safe-be-kind.