The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) Regulations 2020

Interpretation E+W

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

“16 to 19 Academy” has the meaning given by section 1B of the Academies Act 2010 M1 ;

“alcohol” has the meaning given by section 191 of the Licensing Act 2003 M2 ;

“care home” has the meaning given by section 3 of the Care Standards Act 2000 M3 ;

“charitable, benevolent or philanthropic institution” means—

(a)

a charity, or

(b)

an institution, other than a charity, established for charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purposes;

“child” means a person under the age of 18;

“childcare” has the same meaning as in section 18 of the Childcare Act 2006 M4 ;

“Christmas period” means the [F1 25th December 2020];

“coronavirus” means severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2);

“criminal justice accommodation” means—

(a)

a prison, within the meaning of the Prison Act 1952 M5 ,

(b)

a young offender institution, within the meaning of section 43 of that Act,

(c)

a secure training centre, within the meaning of section 43 of that Act,

(d)

approved premises, within the meaning of section 13 of the Offender Management Act 2007 M6 , or

(e)

a bail hostel, within the meaning of section 2 of the Bail Act 1976 M7 ;

“Crown interest” means an interest belonging to Her Majesty in right of the Crown, or belonging to a Government department, or held in trust for Her Majesty for the purposes of a Government department, and includes any estate or interest held in right of the Prince and Steward of Scotland;

“Crown land” means land in which there is a Crown interest or a Duchy interest;

“Duchy interest” means an interest belonging to Her Majesty in right of the Duchy of Lancaster, or belonging to the Duchy of Cornwall;

“early years provision” has the meaning given by section 96(2) of the Childcare Act 2006;

“education, health and care plan” means an EHC plan within the meaning of section 37(2) of the Children and Families Act 2014 M8 ;

“educational accommodation” means—

(a)

accommodation provided for students whilst they are boarding at school, or

(b)

halls of residence provided for students attending higher education courses and equivalent accommodation provided for students attending further education courses or courses at 16 to 19 Academies;

“educational institution” has the meaning given by paragraph 1(11) of Schedule 16 to the Coronavirus Act 2020 M9 ;

“elite sportsperson” means an individual who—

(a)

derives a living from competing in a sport,

(b)

is a senior representative nominated by a relevant sporting body,

(c)

is a member of the senior training squad for a relevant sporting body, or

(d)

is on an elite development pathway;

“further education” has the meaning given by section 2 of the Education Act 1996 M10 ;

“gathering organiser”, in relation to a gathering, means the person responsible for organising the gathering;

“higher education course” means a course of any description mentioned in Schedule 6 to the Education Reform Act 1988 M11 or an equivalent course undertaken outside England and Wales;

“higher education provider” means—

(a)

a higher education provider within the meaning of section 83(1) of the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 M12 , or

(b)

a provider of higher education, within the meaning of section 83(1) of the Higher Education and Research Act 2017, which is not an institution (within the meaning of that section), whether or not it is designated under section 84 of that Act;

“immigration detention accommodation” means—

(a)

a removal centre,

(b)

a short-term holding facility, or

(c)

pre-departure accommodation,

and for these purposes, “removal centre”, “short-term holding facility” and “pre-departure accommodation” have the meanings given by section 147 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 M13 ;

“informal childcare” has the meaning given by regulation 5(8);

“licensed premises” has the meaning given by section 193(1) of the Licensing Act 2003;

“linked childcare household” has the meaning given in regulation 5;

“linked Christmas household” has the meaning given by regulation 4;

“linked household” has the meaning given in regulation 3;

“manager”, in relation to a gathering, means the person responsible for the management of the premises at which the gathering takes place;

“outdoor sports gathering” means a gathering—

(a)

which is organised by a business, a charitable, benevolent or philanthropic institution or a public body for the purposes of allowing persons who are not elite sportspersons to take part in any sport or other fitness related activity,

(b)

which takes place outdoors, and

(c)

in respect of which the gathering organiser or manager takes the required precautions;

“parent” of a child includes any person who is not a parent of the child but who has parental responsibility for, or who has care of, the child;

“parental responsibility” has the meaning given in section 3 of the Children Act 1989 M14 ;

“permitted indoor sports gathering” means a gathering which is organised for the purposes of allowing persons who have a disability who are not elite sportspersons to take part in any sport or other fitness related activity, and—

(a)

which is organised by a business, a charitable, benevolent or philanthropic institution or a public body,

(b)

which takes place indoors on relevant premises (see paragraph (3)), and

(c)

in respect of which the gathering organiser or manager of the relevant premises takes the required precautions;

“permitted organised gathering” has the meaning given in regulation 6;

F2 ...

“person released on temporary licence” means a person who has been temporarily released from—

(a)

a secure children's home, as defined by section 102(11) of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 M15 , or

(b)

criminal justice accommodation under—

(i)

rule 5 of the Secure Training Centre Rules 1998 M16 ;

(ii)

rule 9 of the Prison Rules 1999 M17 ;

(iii)

rule 5 of the Young Offender Institution Rules 2000 M18 ;

“person responsible” for carrying on a business includes the owner, proprietor and manager of that business;

“political body” means—

(a)

a political party registered under Part 2 of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 M19 , or

(b)

a political campaigning organisation within the meaning of regulation 2 of the Health and Social Care (Financial Assistance) Regulations 2009 M20 ;

“premises licence” has the meaning given by section 11 of the Licensing Act 2003;

“proprietor”, in relation to a school, has the meaning given by section 579(1) of the Education Act 1996;

“public outdoor place” means an outdoor place to which the public have, or are permitted, access (whether on payment or otherwise) and includes—

(a)

land laid out as a public garden or used for the purpose of recreation by members of the public;

(b)

land which is “open country” as defined in section 59(2) of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 M21 , as read with section 16 of the Countryside Act 1968 M22 ;

(c)

land which is “access land” for the purposes of Part 1 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 M23 (see section 1(1) of that Act) M24 ;

(d)

any highway to which the public has access;

(e)

Crown land to which the public has access;

“registered pupil” has the meaning given by section 434(5) of the Education Act 1996;

“relevant outdoor activity” means a physical activity which is carried on outdoors and for which a licence, permit or certificate issued by a public body to carry on the activity, or for any equipment used for the purposes of the activity, must be held by—

(a)

the gathering organiser, or

(b)

any person taking part in the activity;

“required precautions” means the precautions which a gathering organiser is required to take in relation to a gathering in accordance with regulation 7;

“school” has the meaning given by section 4 of the Education Act 1996 M25 ;

“sportsground” means any location in which elite sports training or competition takes place for the purpose of, or for purposes which include the purpose of, entertaining spectators;

“support group” means a group or one to one support which is organised by a business, a charitable, benevolent or philanthropic institution or a public body to provide mutual aid, therapy or any other form of support to its members or those who attend its meetings, including those providing support—

(a)

to victims of crime (including domestic abuse);

(b)

to those with, or recovering from, addictions (including alcohol, narcotics or other substance addictions) or addictive patterns of behaviour;

(c)

to new parents;

(d)

to those with, or caring for persons with, any long-term illness or terminal condition or who are vulnerable;

(e)

to those with, or caring for persons with, a disability;

(f)

to those facing issues related to their sexuality or identity including those living as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender;

(g)

to those who have suffered bereavement;

(h)

to vulnerable young persons;

“Tier 1 area” has the meaning given by regulation 8(4)(b);

“Tier 1 restrictions” has the meaning given by regulation 8(4)(a);

“Tier 2 area” has the meaning given by regulation 8(4)(d);

“Tier 2 restrictions” has the meaning given by regulation 8(4)(c);

“Tier 3 restrictions” has the meaning given by regulation 8(4)(e);

[F3 “Tier 4 area” has the meaning given by regulation 8(4)(h);

“Tier 4 restrictions” has the meaning given by regulation 8(4)(g);]

“Tier 3 area” has the meaning given by regulation 8(4)(f);

“vessel” means any ship, boat, barge, lighter or raft and any other description of craft, whether used in navigation or not;

“vulnerable person” includes—

(a)

any person aged 70 or older;

(b)

any person aged under 70 who has an underlying health condition, including (but not limited to) the conditions listed in paragraph (5);

(c)

any person who is pregnant.

(2) In the definition of “elite sportsperson”—

(a) “elite development pathway” means a development pathway established by the national governing body of a sport to prepare sportspersons—

(i) so that they may derive a living from competing in that sport, or

(ii) to compete in that sport at the Tokyo or Beijing Olympic or Paralympic Games[F4 , or at the Paris Olympic or Paralympic Games], or, if that sport is not part of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games programme [F5 or the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games programme], in the Commonwealth Games to be held in Birmingham;

(b) “relevant sporting body” means the national governing body of a sport which may nominate sportspersons to represent—

(i) Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the Tokyo or Beijing Olympic or Paralympic Games[F6 , or at the Paris Olympic or Paralympic Games], or

(ii) England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man at the Commonwealth Games to be held in Birmingham in those sports which are not part of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games programme [F7 or the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games programme];

(c) “senior representative” means an individual who is considered by a relevant sporting body to be a candidate to qualify to compete on behalf of—

(i) Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the Tokyo or Beijing Olympic or Paralympic Games [F8 or at the Paris Olympic or Paralympic Games], or

(ii) England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man at the Commonwealth Games to be held in Birmingham in those sports which are not part of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games programme [F9 or the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games programme].

(3) In the definition of “permitted indoor sports gatherings”, “relevant premises” means premises (other than a private dwelling)—

(a) which are operated by a business, a charitable, benevolent or philanthropic institution or a public body, or

(b) which are part of premises used for the operation of a business, a charitable, benevolent or philanthropic institution or a public body.

(4) In the definition of “relevant outdoor activity”, the reference to a licence does not include a licence to drive a motor vehicle in the United Kingdom or to serve food or alcohol.

(5) The conditions referred to in the definition of “vulnerable person” are—

(a) chronic (long-term) respiratory diseases, such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema or bronchitis;

(b) chronic heart disease, such as heart failure;

(c) chronic kidney disease;

(d) chronic liver disease, such as hepatitis;

(e) chronic neurological conditions, such as Parkinson's disease, motor neurone disease, multiple sclerosis, a learning disability or cerebral palsy;

(f) diabetes;

(g) problems with the spleen, such as sickle cell disease or removal of the spleen;

(h) a weakened immune system as a result of conditions such as HIV and AIDS, or medicines such as steroid tablets or chemotherapy;

(i) being seriously overweight with a body mass index of 40 or above.

(6) For the purposes of these Regulations—

(a) references to a person who has a disability are to a person who has a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on that person's ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities;

(b) references to a “consular post” means a consulate-general, consulate, vice-consulate or consular agency;

(c) references to a “local authority” include references to a county council;

(d) a county council for an area for which there is also a district council is to be regarded, with respect to its functions under these Regulations, as a relevant health protection authority for the purposes of the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984;

(e) a gathering takes place when two or more persons are present together in the same place in order—

(i) to engage in any form of social interaction with each other, or

(ii) to undertake any other activity with each other;

(f) a place is indoors if it would be considered to be enclosed, or substantially enclosed, for the purposes of section 2 of the Health Act 2006 M26 , under the Smoke-free (Premises and Enforcement) Regulations 2006 M27 ;

(g) references to a “private dwelling”—

(i) include references to a houseboat and any garden, yard, passage, stair, outhouse or other appurtenance of the dwelling;

(ii) do not, except in regulation 6(2) or unless otherwise specified, include references to the following—

(aa) accommodation in a hotel, hostel, campsite, caravan park, members' club, boarding house or bed and breakfast accommodation;

(bb) care homes;

(cc) children's homes, within the meaning of section 1 of the Care Standards Act 2000;

(dd) residential family centres, within the meaning of section 4 of that Act;

(ee) educational accommodation;

(ff) accommodation intended for use by Her Majesty's armed forces.

(7) For the purposes of paragraph (6)(a) regulations 3 to 5 of the Equality Act 2010 (Disability) Regulations 2010 M28 apply in considering whether a person has an impairment.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in reg. 2(1) substituted (20.12.2020 at 7.00 a.m.) by The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers and Obligations of Undertakings) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1611), regs. 1(2), 2(3)(a)

F2 Words in reg. 2(1) omitted (26.12.2020) by virtue of The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1646), regs. 1(2), 2(2)

F3 Words in reg. 2(1) inserted (20.12.2020 at 7.00 a.m.) by The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers and Obligations of Undertakings) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1611), regs. 1(2), 2(3)(c)

F4 Words in reg. 2(2)(a)(ii) inserted (26.12.2020) by The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1646), regs. 1(2), 2(3)(a)(i)

F5 Words in reg. 2(2)(a)(ii) inserted (26.12.2020) by The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1646), regs. 1(2), 2(3)(a)(ii)

F6 Words in reg. 2(2)(b)(i) inserted (26.12.2020) by The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1646), regs. 1(2), 2(3)(b)

F7 Words in reg. 2(2)(b)(ii) inserted (26.12.2020) by The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1646), regs. 1(2), 2(3)(c)

F8 Words in reg. 2(2)(c)(i) inserted (26.12.2020) by The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1646), regs. 1(2), 2(3)(d)

F9 Words in reg. 2(2)(c)(ii) inserted (26.12.2020) by The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1646), regs. 1(2), 2(3)(e)

Commencement Information

I1 Reg. 2 in force at 2.12.2020, see reg. 1(2)

Marginal Citations

M1 2010 c. 32. Section 1B was inserted by section 53(7) the Education Act 2011 (c. 21).

M2 2003 c. 17. Section 191 was amended by the Policing and Crime Act 2017 (c. 3), section 135, and by S.I. 2006/2407.

M3 2000 c. 14. Section 3 was amended by the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (c. 14). There are other amendments to section 3 which are not relevant to this instrument.

M4 2006 c. 21. Section 18 was amended by the Children and Young Persons Act 2008 (c. 23), Schedule 1, paragraph 19, and Schedule 4; the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 (c. 2), Schedule 9, paragraph 21, and S.I. 2010/813.

M5 1952 c. 52.

M6 2007 c. 21.

M7 1976 c. 63. Section 2 was amended by the Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000 (c. 6), Schedule 9, paragraph 50(3)(a). There are other amendments to section 2 which are not relevant to this instrument.

M8 2014. c. 6.

M9 2020 c. 7.

M10 1996 c. 56.

M11 1988 c. 40.

M12 2017 c. 29.

M13 1999 c. 33. The definition of “removal centre” was inserted into section 147, by s. 66(1) of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 (c. 41), and amended by s. 6(2) of Immigration Act 2014 (c. 22); the definition of “short-term holding facility” was amended by s. 25 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009 (c. 11), and section 6(2) of the Immigration Act 2014; the definition of “pre-departure accommodation” was inserted by s. 6(2) of the Immigration Act 2014. There are other amendments to section 147 which are not relevant to this instrument.

M14 1989 c. 41.

M15 2012 c. 10.

M16 S.I. 1998/472.

M17 S.I. 1999/728, as amended by S.I. 2018/960, 2020/400 and 2020/508.

M18 S.I. 2000/3371, as amended by S.I. 2014/2169, 2018/960, 2020/400 and 2020/508.

M19 2000 c. 41.

M20 S.I. 2009/649.

M21 1949 c. 97.

M22 1968 c. 41. Section 16 was amended by section 111 of the Transport Act 1968 (c. 73), Schedule 27 to the Water Act 1989 (c. 15) and S.I. 2012/1659. There are other amendments to section 16 which are not relevant to this instrument.

M23 2000 c. 37.

M24 The definition of “access land” has been amended by section 303(2) of, and Part 7 of Schedule 22 to, the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 (c. 23).

M25 1996 c. 56. Section 4 has been amended by the Education Act 1997 (c. 44), s. 51, Schedule 7, paragraph 10, and Schedule 8, paragraph 1; the Education Act 2002 (c. 32), Part 3 of Schedule 22; the Childcare Act 2006 (c. 21), s. 95; S.I. 2010/1080; the Education Act 2011 (c. 21), Schedule 13, paragraph 9(2); and S.I. 2019/1027. There are other amendments to section 4 which are not relevant to this instrument.

M26 2006 c. 28. Section 2 was amended by paragraph 4 of Schedule 2 to the Public Health (Wales) Act 2017 (2017 anaw 2).

M27 S.I. 2006/3368, to which there are amendments which are not relevant to these Regulations.

M28 S.I. 2010/2128.