Social distancing guidance for young people

The government has published new guidance for young people on staying alert and safe regarding coronavirus.

All of us, young people included, have helped to reduce the spread of coronavirus. We have done this by making changes to our lives and following the guidance. As we move to the next stage of controlling coronavirus, it is important that we stay alert and follow the guidance in order to save lives. Being ‘alert’ means being aware of how to behave safely and keeping up to date with the latest government guidance.

The government has developed a plan to allow people to gradually go back to the way they were living before coronavirus. This will not be happening immediately, and may happen in different stages for different people. The goal is to “stay alert, control the virus, save lives’

To stop coronavirus (COVID-19) spreading, everyone should be staying at home as much as possible. Some young people, who are clinically extremely vulnerable, should stay at home all the time. This is called ‘shielding’. Guidance on ‘shielding’ for these clinically extremely vulnerable young people is available here.

This guidance is about social distancing and what you can do to stay alert and safe during this time, and explains the new measures that will help you to stay safe as rules on being outside, or at school or work, change.

The guidance was developed by young people, who were supported by YPHP and other youth orgnisations including the NHS Youth Forum, iwill, and RCOCH&Us, and Public Health England.

To read the guidance, please click here.