April 12 reopening date confirmed for beauty salons and spas in England

Personal care businesses in England, including beauty salons, spas and mobile therapists, can reopen from April 12, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has confirmed.

Speaking during a public briefing, the Prime Minister confirmed that the next stage of England’s roadmap out of coronavirus lockdown will commence from April 12, meaning beauty businesses can reopen, although spas will not be allowed to operate their saunas and steam rooms until stage three, which will be no earlier than May 17.

The Government has also published an update to its Coronavirus restrictions document, which states "From 12 April non-essential retail will be able to reopen; personal care premises such as hairdressers and nail salons will be able to reopen".

Unlike the gradual reopening following lockdown one in summer 2020, there will be no restrictions on face treatments, providing safety guidleines are followed.

What are the current Government guidelines for close contact services?

The Government's official guidance for close contact services including beauty salons, spas and therapists, was updated on March 30, 2021, ahead of the April 12 reopening date, with new rules around ventilation and testing.

The new guidance includes additional information on ventilation and testing, including the rules around providing testing on site and ensuring that workplace testing is carried out. Find out more here.

What are the next stages of England's coronavirus roadmap?

Addressing parliament on February 22, the Prime Minister said the roadmap out of lockdown would follow a four-step plan and that there would be no regional differences across England. He said each step would be dependent expectations being met on the vaccine rollout, on falling Covid-19 cases and hospital admissions, and the absence of any major concerns over new variants.

Step one of the lockdown easing began in March, with the reopening of schools from March 8 and the return of the rule of six for outdoor meet-ups from March 29.

Step two will see salons reopen, along with non-essential retail. Pubs and restaurants will be allowed to serve customers outdoors. This will come into force from April 12, providing step one goes according to plan. 

Salons and spas will be allowed to reopen but spas will not be allowed to operate their saunas and steam rooms until stage three.

Step three involves a return for indoor entertainment, including bars and restaurants, and is expected to come in from May 17.

Step four will see a return to household mixing indoors, UK holidays and some large-scale events. This is expected from June 21.

The Government then published its Covid-19 Response Spring 2021, setting out the roadmap out of the current lockdown for England. 

Significantly, the Government report acknowledged the economic power of the beauty and hair industry and the impact that lockdown measures have had on its workforce, stating: "Personal care activities accounted for £21.1 billion in the UK in 2019 (£18.9 billion in England), providing 566,000 jobs (507,000 in England). Women are significantly overrepresented in this sector, making up 85% of the workforce."

In February, the Prime Minister said he wanted to ensure there are no further lockdowns after the current one, adding, “This roadmap should be cautious but also irreversible”.

He also said there will be at least five weeks between each step and that the Government will give at least one week’s notice of each step being implemented.

The Prime Minister said it was possible to begin to implement this roadmap next month because the vaccine rollout was going well, with 17.5 million people in the UK having now received the vaccine.

In closing, he said "the end really is in sight", saying he intended for this reopening to be final and that we can expect a positive summer.

When do beauty salons and spas reopen in the rest of the UK?

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said that beauty salons and mobile beauty businesses in Scotland could reopen their doors on April 26 as part of the Scottish Government’s coronavirus roadmap. However, hairdressers and barbershops were able to reopen from an earlier date of April 5 on an appointment-only basis.

It was confirmed on April 1 that beauty salons in Wales will be allowed to reopen their doors on April 12 as part of the Welsh Government's roadmap out of coronavirus lockdown, while hairdressers and barbers were allowed to reopen on March 15. 

Restrictions began to ease in Northern Ireland from April 1 including allowances for people to begin meeting outdoors in groups of up to 10. Further restrictions are due to be lifted from April 12, but as yet there is no confirmed reopening date for beauty salons.