one constant visitor per resident, and gives local authorities and public health directors responsibility for giving the go-ahead to individual homes. driving tests resume in england. 23 july – on the eve of the introduction of new regulations for the wearing of face coverings in england, the uk government releases full guidelines on when and where they should be worn. a network of covid walk-in test centres will be established throughout england, with a view to being fully operational by the end of october. residents in blackburn and luton are told the latest round of lockdown easing will not be allowed in those towns due to a high number of covid-19 cases. 24 july – the health protection (coronavirus, wearing of face coverings in a relevant place) (england) regulations 2020 come into force, requiring members of the public to wear a face covering in most indoor shops, shopping centres, banks, post offices and public transport hubs. they must also be worn by anyone buying takeaway food or drink from an outlet, but may be removed by those eating in. children under 11, and people with disabilities or certain health conditions that would make the wearing of a face covering difficult are exempt. the new regulations are similar to the health protection (coronavirus, wearing of face coverings on public transport) (england) regulations 2020, which came into force on 15 june 2020. the football association confirms that the 2020–21 english premier league and football league season will begin on 12 september. the list of countries from where travellers do not have to quarantine when arriving in england is updated, adding estonia, latvia, slovakia, slovenia and st vincent and the grenadines; travellers from portugal must still isolate for 14 days. the uk government announces that 30 million people in england will be offered the flu vaccine over the coming winter. it is reported that, as a result of the pandemic and job losses, almost 1,000 people have applied to a restaurant in manchester advertising a vacancy for a receptionist. 25 july – with the coming into force of the health protection (coronavirus, restrictions) (no. 2) (england) (amendment) (no. 2) regulations 2020, indoor gyms, swimming pools and other indoor sports facilities begin to reopen. public health england warns that being obese and overweight puts people at greater risk of severe illness or death as a result of covid-19. the uk government announces £2.25m worth of emergency funding for small music venues in england, which will be shared by 150 venues. following a rise in covid-19 cases in spain, and concerns of a second wave, the uk government confirms that travellers returning to england from spain will be required to quarantine for 14 days from 26 july. 26 july – 21 people have tested positive for covid-19 at a caravan park in craven arms, shropshire, with health experts warning the number of cases will rise. westminster abbey has warned it is set to make 20% of its staff redundant after losing as much as £12m in tourist revenue because of the lockdown. 27 july – a concrete-making plant involved in the construction of the hinkley point nuclear processing plant is closed by owners balfour beatty following an outbreak of covid-19 at the site. 28 july – oldham introduces tougher restrictions to curb the virus after a spike in cases; residents are asked to refrain from having social visitors, keep two metres apart when outside, and those who are shielding are asked to continue to do so until 14 august, while care homes will not relax restrictions. folk musician frank turner plays a gig to an audience of 200 at london's clapham grand where safety measures are trialled for the return of live music. but the venue's manager says the format is not economically viable as it would not allow venues to make enough money to cover operating costs. 30 july – office for national statistics figures indicate that england had the highest number of excess deaths in europe between the end of february and mid-june, and had the second highest peak in number of deaths behind spain. restrictions are placed on greater manchester, and parts of east lancashire and yorkshire prohibiting separate households from meeting indoors following an "increasing rate of transmission" in those areas caused by people failing to adhere to social distancing rules. the restrictions take effect from midnight. 31 july – prime minister boris johnson postpones some lockdown easing measures scheduled to begin on 1 august for two weeks amid concerns about rising covid-19 cases. bowling alleys and casinos will remain closed until 15 august, while wedding receptions of up to 30 people are also moved back to that date. trials of spectator sporting events are also paused. from 8 august the wearing of face coverings in more indoor settings, such as cinemas and places of worship will become mandatory. the ons household survey indicates covid-19 cases in england are rising again, with an increase from 2,800 to 4,200 daily cases in the week of 20–26 july. pubs, restaurants and hairdressers in leicester are given permission to reopen from monday 3 august. august 2020 1 august – the shielding programme is paused for england and scotland, but will continue for the areas where extra precautions have been introduced. professor graham medley, one of the scientists advising the government, suggests a "trade-off" may be required to allow schools to reopen in england, whereby pubs or "other facilities" have to close. local authorities warn of the difficulty of enforcing social distancing rules on beaches after a spell of hot weather results in an influx of people to the coast. 2 august – a major incident is declared in greater manchester after rises in coronavirus infection rates. housing minister robert jenrick says that reopening schools in england for september is an "absolute priority" for the government. 3 august – restaurants, pubs and hairdressers in leicester are allowed to reopen as lockdown restrictions are eased in the city. 5 august – anne longfield, england's children's commissioner, says that schools should be the "first to open, last to close" in any future lockdown scenario, because children pose a lesser risk of spreading covid-19. tahir malik resigns as mayor of luton for breaching lockdown restrictions after being pictured at a garden party with two other councillors. figures released by transport for london indicate its staff caught 53,900 people not wearing a mask on its buses between 4 july and 2 august. 6 august – 50 million face masks bought by the uk government for use by nhs england in april will not be used due to safety concerns, officials confirm. the masks, which fasten rather than having head loops do not fit tightly enough. officials state that a second attempt at creating a contact-tracing app for england has almost reached the testing phase. 7 august – lockdown measures are reintroduced in preston, lancashire, effective from midnight and following a spike in covid-19 cases there. they include banning households from meeting up with each other at home. 8 august – the health protection (coronavirus, wearing of face coverings in a relevant place) (england) (amendment) regulations 2020 come into effect, extending the range of indoor locations where a face covering has to be worn to include indoor places of worship, community centres, crematoria and burial ground chapels, public areas in hotels, public halls including concert and exhibition halls, cinemas, museums, galleries, aquariums, indoor zoos and visitor farms, indoor parts of tourist, heritage or cultural sites, bingo halls, and public libraries. the rise in covid cases among those under 30 in the preston area prompts authorities to launch the "don't kill granny" slogan. 9 august – writing in the mail on sunday, prime minister boris johnson says there is a "moral duty" to get all children in england back to school in september. andy burnham, the mayor of greater manchester, warns that pubs may have to close to allow schools to reopen safely if england's nhs test and trace is not "fixed urgently". his comments come after data suggests a 53% local success rate in tracing those who have had contact with a person testing positive for covid-19. 10 august – the uk government announces that nhs test and trace will shrink its contact tracers from 18,000 to 12,000 by the end of august, with the remainder working in teams alongside local public health officials in the community, where they will visit those who have come into contact with an infected person. the strategy has been deployed successfully in places like blackburn and luton. 12 august – education secretary gavin williamson apologises to every school pupil for "the disruption that they've had to suffer" because of the pandemic, and says the best thing that can happen now is for them all to return to school. 13 august – england's revamped contact-tracing app begins public trials, with residents of the isle of wight, the london borough of newham, and nhs volunteer responders being the first to test it. workers at a sandwich factory in northampton are self-isolating following an outbreak of covid-19 at the plant. a level results are published. in england, 36% of results are lower than teachers predicted, with 3% being two grades lower. prime minister boris johnson announces a further easing of lockdown measures for england from 15 august, with a greater range of beauty treatments, indoor gigs and wedding receptions of up to 30 permitted, as well as the reopening of bowling alleys, casinos and soft play centres. potential fines for refusing to wear a mask and the organisers or illegal raves are also to be increased. 14 august – office for national statistics figures indicate cases of covid-19 appear to have stabilised in england following a small increase in july, and despite local clusters of cases. the latest statistics show an estimated 1 in 1,900 in england, or 28,300 people, have the virus. government figures indicate the r number to be between 0.8 and 1 in england, but members of the scientific advisory group for emergencies (sage) that advises the government, say they are not confident the number is below 1. the department of health and social care confirms that lockdown restrictions are to remain in greater manchester and parts of east lancashire as cases have not decreased in the area. restrictions are also to continue in parts of west yorkshire and leicester. 15 august – education secretary gavin williamson confirms a level and gcse appeals will be free. liverpool's cavern club, famous for launching the career of the beatles, has reported it faces financial ruin because of the covid-19 pandemic, having lost an estimated £30,000 a week since lockdown began in march. 16 august – the sunday telegraph reports that public health england is to be replaced by a new organisation tasked with protecting the uk against future pandemics. 17 august – the uk government announces that a level and gcse students in england will have their results based on teachers' assessments following uproar over grades. 18 august – health secretary matt hancock announces the creation of the national institute for health protection to replace public health england; baroness dido harding is appointed as its chair. lockdown measures are partially eased in leicester, allowing beauty salons and outdoor pools to reopen from the following day. 19 august – birmingham's director of public health bans "non-essential" visits to care homes following a rise of covid-19 cases in the city. the uk government announces plans to expand the office for national statistics' infection survey, which tests people fortnightly for covid-19; tests will increase from 28,000 people in england to 150,000 by october. 20 august – gcse results are published, with grades now based on teachers' assessments; 78.8% of papers rated grade 4 or above, compared to 69.9% in 2019. the uk government lifts the cap on the number of medical, dentistry, veterinary and teaching students enrolling on courses, and agrees targeted extra funding, while universities in england will offer students their first choice of course, though many will have to defer for a year. 21 august – stricter restrictions are announced for residents in oldham, pendle and blackburn from midnight on 22 august, preventing them from socialising with anyone outside their household, but workplaces, childcare facilities and businesses, including restaurants and pubs, are to remain open.