Wiltshire Council is urging local communities and businesses to follow the raft of new measures introduced by the government this week to help tackle the spread of coronavirus.

This includes the ‘rule of six’ and the requirement for some businesses to collect customer contact information.

The new measures mean people can’t meet with those from other households socially in groups of more than six. This applies indoors and outdoors, including private homes.

There are a limited number of exemptions such as, registered childcare, education or training and for work.

For example, a tradesperson can go into a household of six without breaching the limit, if they are there for work.

Restaurants, hospitality venues and places of worship can still host larger numbers in total, but groups of up to six must not mix or form larger groups. This change aims to make the rules on social gatherings easier to understand and easier for the police to enforce.

Leader of Wiltshire Council Philip Whitehead said: “We would like to thank residents and businesses for playing their part in helping to stop the spread of Covid-19. We must not be complacent and should continue to follow the safety measures in place. This will help reduce the need for any local lockdowns and ensure we can all return to a more normal way of life in the future.”

From September 18, premises and venues will be legally required to record contact details of their customers, visitors and staff.

Businesses and other public places where people meet socially, including hospitality, close contact, tourism and leisure venues such as pubs, restaurants, cafes, hairdressers and cinemas must record the contact details from every customer and visitor to their premises.

Venues must keep a record of all staff working on the premises on a given day and their contact details.

All details must be securely stored for 21 days and shared with NHS Test and Trace, if requested. This will help NHS Test and Trace identify and trace all the people who have been in contact with a person who has tested positive for Covid-19.

Businesses adhering to these changes in legislation provide greater confidence to their customers that they are taking their safety seriously.

Businesses are also encouraged to prepare for the NHS Covid-19 app which is being launched on September 24 and have the NHS QR code posters visible on entry so customers who have downloaded the app can use their smartphones to easily check-in. This will allow contact tracers to track down customers in order to provide public health advice in the event of a Covid-19 outbreak.

Firms already using their own QR system are being encouraged to switch to the Test and Trace QR code.