The Stay At Home Order is officially lifted in England on March 29 as the country takes another big step towards exiting lockdown restrictions.
Following the reopening of schools earlier this month, the next stage of the Government’s roadmap out of national lockdown will proceed as planned from Monday – with a further set of measures being “irreversibly” removed.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson had previously warned that the impact of a third wave of COVID-19 infections being seen in Europe would “wash up on our shores” in due course, but emphasised that England would nonetheless “bash on with the roadmap set out”.
Over the weekend, the PM confirmed that lockdown easing indeed remained on schedule, stating: “And as things stand, I can see absolutely nothing in the data to dissuade me from continuing along our roadmap to freedom, unlocking our economy and getting back to the life we love.”
The changes being made on March 29 allow for more social contact, the return of some outdoor sport, and slightly more freedom in terms of travel.
The ‘Rule of Six’ returns – This means you’re allowed to meet up in groups of six, or two households, anywhere outdoors, but no meeting inside homes is permitted.
Outdoor sports facilities such as tennis and basketball courts, and open-air swimming pools, can reopen.
Organised outdoor sports for children and adults are permitted.
Outdoor parent and child groups, with a maximum of 15 parents, can take place.
The “Stay at Home” rule will be removed from March 29.
However, people should continue to work from home where they can and minimise the number of journeys they make where possible, avoiding travel at the busiest times and routes.
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Travel abroad is still prohibited.
When will more restrictions be lifted?
If the data allows it, further restrictions will be eased on April 12 as part of ‘Step Two’ of lifting England’s lockdown.
This will see the reopening of non-essential retail, gyms, hairdressers, nail salons, libraries and museums – as well as outdoor hospitality and self-catered accommodation.
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Under current plans, further restrictions are then set to be lifted on May 17 – including the resumption of service for the indoor hospitality sector.
The final step of the roadmap commences on June 21, with a view to lifting all lockdown measures by this date.
You can view the Government’s full roadmap to exiting lockdown online.
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Six teenage boys arrested following stabbing of 13-year-old in Rochdale town centre
Emily Sergeant
Six teenage boys have been arrested following the stabbing of a 13-year-old in Rochdale town centre over the weekend.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) explained that officers were called out to reports of a ‘serious assault’ near the Riverside Shopping Centre in central Rochdale on Saturday (29 August), and when they arrived on the scene, they found that a 13-year-old boy had been stabbed.
The young boy currently remains in hospital receiving treatment, while a police investigation into the incident is open and ongoing.
Two teenage boys were first arrested on suspicion of assault and possession of a bladed article on the same day the incident occurred (29 August), but have since been released on bail.
Officers then made four further arrests yesterday (31 August), again all teenage boys who were arrested on suspicion of assault and possession of a bladed article, with enquires ongoing.
A Section 60 and 60AA ‘stop and search’ authority was introduced in Rochdale town centre following the recent incidents in area and following reports of youths carrying weapons in the locality, and this has now been extended to 3pm today (Tuesday 1 September).
“This was a serious and sustained attack that could have had far more tragic consequences,” explained Detective Superintendent, Richard Hunt .”Our team of experienced detectives is working around the clock to understand exactly what happened, identify all those involved, and secure the strongest possible evidence.
“We will relentlessly pursue every lead available to us and will leave no stone unturned in bringing all those responsible before the courts.
“Community safety remains our absolute priority, and we are committed to ensuring those who seek to bring violence onto our streets are held fully accountable for their actions.”
Can you help? Anyone who witnessed the incident, was in the town centre at the time, or has any mobile phone, CCTV, or dashcam footage, is urged to come forward and speak to police on 101, quoting log 2750 of 29/08/2026, or using the LiveChat function on the GMP website.
Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
Featured Image – GMP
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High School Musical at Lowry, Salford – a night spent reliving our childhood | Review
Amy Williams
What a night spent reliving our childhood.
Now, I don’t want to exaggerate or seem biased, considering this is one of my favourite film trilogies of all time, but this could be the best stage show I’ve seen in a long while.
We all know how High School Musical goes, right? Set at East High, we follow Troy and Gabriella (the star basketball player, and the geeky new girl) who meet over New Year, and then become ‘star-crossed lovers’ when back at school as they’re part of two different ‘cliques’.
The duo mess with the ‘Status Quo’ when they audition for the school musical. But will they stick to what they know? Or become stars of the stage? I’m sure you know the ending.
High School Musical is currently on stage at Lowry, Salford / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
From the costumes and the characters, to the memorable songs (there’s actually 52 songs in this production, including a mega mix at the end), they’ve kept right to the script of the films – and that’s exactly what we wanted to see.
Of course, the biggest throwback of them all is Kaycee Stroh – who originally featured as Martha Cox in the film trilogy – taking the role as Ms Darbus, and she was just as incredible as we expected her to be. And to see her do the iconic dance in the finale was unbelievable, 13-year-old Amy was screaming.
Also featuring Jason Donovan as Coach Bolton, Tobias Turley as Troy, Leonor Correia as Gabriella, Caitlin Tipping Sharpay, and Luke Bayer as Ryan, it was a proper impressive cast all round.
It’s a night to properly relive your mid-00s childhood / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
There was crowd interaction right from the off, as they taught the crowd a cheerleading routine to be included later in the show, plus for the finale, they had the lyrics on the big screen too so everyone could sing-along.
If we could go and see this show every single night, we would – it is absolutely brilliant.
The Manc -
22nd March 2021 
