Bringing bubbles back to the Bailiwick

Thursday 18 February 2021

Guernsey will begin its exit from lockdown on Monday 22 February, and with it returns the ability for islanders to bubble, with a reminder given about how they work.

Stage 1 will allow two different households to bubble together, and within this bubble social distancing guidelines will no longer apply.

We’ve done it before. Household bubbles were a big talking point back in 2020 when the Bailiwick of Guernsey experienced its first lockdown, now in its second, the rules are identical.

“We are all familiar with bubbles,” said Health & Social Care President Al Brouard, “and this is exactly the same.”

Pictured: Two households can create a bubble when we enter Stage 1, allowing them to freely move between two properties.

It has been stressed that if you created a 'support bubble' during full lockdown, this counts as your household bubble in Stage 1. You can’t change in Stage 1, you’ve essentially made your choice until additional bubbles are permitted. 

You also must stick with the first bubble you choose in Stage 1, which cannot be changed once chosen - an example of some of the tough decisions associated with bubbling that saw the CCA give serious consideration to not re-introducing them. 

Your bubble can be mobile. You can take your bubble to the beach or the park, as long as your bubble maintains distance from other groups of people out and about.

A slight change this year will be that five people from separate households will be able to meet outside, as long as they socially distance. It’s hoped that this will allow people who might miss out on a bubble the opportunity to still socialise.

 “We know from previous lockdowns that bubbles worked really well for lots of people,” said Deputy Brouard, “but for others it created tough choices.”

“When we say outside for non-household bubbles, we don’t mean you garden,” he added.

Pictured: If we follow the guidelines, and tick off these criteria, we can then start the move to stage 2.

The number of active cases has now dropped to 123 in Guernsey and the CCA has agreed it’s time for tentative steps towards exiting lockdown.