- Government launches new national campaign encouraging people to keep going and stay at home
- The new advertising reminds people everything they’re doing is helping stop the spread of the virus
- As set out in the roadmap, lockdown will begin to lift but it emphasises the need for caution to keep the virus under control
While transmission rates decline, vaccines continue to be rolled out and the roadmap out of lockdown has been published, the heartening new campaign is encouraging people to ‘keep going’. It acknowledges how difficult lockdown has been but highlights its effectiveness with falling infection rates and successful vaccine roll-out.
The campaign will run across TV, radio, out-of-home advertising and on social media, reminding people that everything they’ve done – working from home, washing their hands, wearing a mask, maintaining social distancing and video calling – is helping stop the spread of COVID-19 and new variants, edging us closer to coming out of lockdown. Every small act is making a big difference and it is important that everyone keeps doing what they’re doing. It aired for the first time on ITV at 7:15pm on Wednesday 24 February.
Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said:
The British resolve during this pandemic has been astounding. We’ve all pulled together to help each other out.
I know it’s been a long year but we can’t let up now. Everything we’re doing is bringing us one step closer to beating this virus.
The vaccine roll-out is going extremely well and is saving lives – but it is not the only way we will reduce infection rates and be able to get back to normality.
So let’s keep going. I encourage everyone to keep playing their part and stay at home – keep washing your hands, wearing a mask and maintaining a social distance which will ensure that, together, we beat this.
Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty said:
Infection rates are falling, but they still remain very high and the impact of COVID-19 is still putting pressure on hospitals across the country.
Vaccines give clear hope for the future, but for now we must all continue to play our part in protecting the NHS and saving lives.
This week, the Prime Minister has set out 4 stages of the roadmap – the first of which will involve reopening schools and allowing outdoor recreation with one other person from 8 March. However, even at this point, the stay at home order remains in place and people can still only legally leave their house for a very limited number of reasons. The stay at home message will, at the earliest, end on 29 March where people will be urged to stay local and keep taking individual decisions around their risk exposure.
The vast majority of people are staying at home and as a result, the number of COVID-19 cases is falling. However, infection levels remain high and the impact of the second wave is still being seen in hospitals across the country with over 1,000 people admitted to hospital every day. It is critical everyone continues to stay at home and follow the rules to help bring down infections even further and reduce pressure on the NHS.
Background information
The message is clear: stay at home. However, if you do have to go outside you must:
- keep 2 metres away from everyone
- wear a face mask covering the nose and mouth, when indoors
- keep washing your hands
