Due to residents’ concerns around people not wearing face coverings, at a recent council meeting to discuss “Local Outbreaks” with Tessa Lindfield, Strategic Director of Public Health for Berkshire and fellow Councillors & senior RBWM officers, I asked Tessa a direct question.

During the meeting we had touched on various aspects and I had shared with her my own stories and concerns which she understood and appreciated there is a fine balance and the government wants to bring people along with them and this will take time.

I asked Tessa directly what were the most important recommendations in keeping residents safe, bearing in mind there are those who want to do things right but do struggle for health or mental reasons with face coverings and her response was…

You can’t rank protective measures in order of effectiveness, they all should be used together and are all important and the three key things – all done together – are:

1. Wash your hands regularly – to ensure you minimise the risk of self infection
2. Keep 2 metres apart – a germ fueled sneeze will struggle to travel further
3. Wear face coverings inside public buildings which are recommended but not mandatory for people who struggle to breathe wearing them – this is aimed at preventing you infecting others with a cough or sneeze.

This statement has been agreed with the Strategic Director of Public Health for Berkshire before publishing.

Thank you.

Jon

Photo by Georg Arthur Pflueger on Unsplash