We are opening on Saturday

We are opening up again this weekend. At last I hear you say!! However, things will not be like they were. COVID has robbed us of normality and it might be sometime before we are back to it.

Your Management Team has been working very hard, with the help of John and Ellen to carry out Risk Assessments and implement safe practices for opening. Whilst we have done our best to make the re-opening as safe as we can, we cannot completely eliminate risk. If you have COVID Symptoms or it is less than 7 days since you recovered, we ask you to stay away, until fully recovered. If you are in a high-risk category, we suggest that you do not come to the club at this stage. Whilst the club is doing all it can, it is also the responsibility of all who attend to look after their own safety.

The risk of contracting COVID either from inhaling airborne particles or from touching and ingesting the virus, have made opening up of the Club more difficult. The Social distancing measures this calls for are going to limit what we can do with the Club. To mitigate these affects we are having to implement a number of measures. The number of people we can socially distance outside is almost limitless, but we are limited by the numbers we can get to the Toilets and Bar Facilities. We will also have significantly reduced capacity should we have to move inside. At this stage we are waiting to see how many turn up, but we may have to introduce a booking system if the openings are too popular.

Here are the basics on our openings:

• Initial openings are 2pm-8pm Saturdays and 2pm-7pm Sundays. We may extend these or open Friday Evenings if these are popular.
• The Club will only be open for Members and family only, apart from special openings such as the Cinema Weekend. We realise most of you have not yet paid this year’s membership, but just bring your Membership card.
• There will be a set of COVID regulations in place. We ask that you observe these correctly. We may have to ask people to leave the premises if they will not observe these regulations.
• Children may attend, but it is the responsibility of the parents to ensure that they too observe the COVID regulations.
• If the weather is good, we are only going to open the outside Bar and Kitchen. Whilst we are set up to use the indoor facilities safely, we will only use these as a last resort. Instructions will be given if we have to use the inside facilities, but the principle of operation remains the same.

I am going to try and explain below what we have put in place to meet the regulations and what we would like our members to comply with:

• Register your contact details with the Bar Manager on arrival. These details will be used for Track and Trace should this be necessary. We will need to keep these details for 3 weeks. You will need to re-register every time you attend. You also need to list everyone in your social / family group.
• Please keep following government guidelines with regard to cleanliness. Wash your hands regularly. We have provided Sanitiser in the Toilets and in the general outside areas.
• Keep Social distanced. We are asking people to keep more than 2m apart where possible, except in their family “pods”. We have set out tables at the right distance apart to meet these requirements and where the customers need or want to spill onto the field, we have marked centres of the pitches for your social / family “pods”. You must ensure that these “pods” do not encroach within 2m of any adjacent “pod”.
• Work with instructions given on notices, by Bar and Catering personnel and by Club Management. It is for your safety.

The operation of the Bar will be as follows:

• Select the Table / Pod you want and sit down. Register with the Bar Manager.
• Drinks will be provided by Table Service. Initially this will be done by calling over one of the Bar Staff who are waiting on tables and place the order. The Bar Staff will bring the drinks to the Table and take payment.
• There will be NO SERVICE at the bar, so please do not get up and queue there.
• Payment is by Card only and contactless is preferred. We are looking at an App to purchase Drinks and Food, but this will probably not be available on Saturday.
• Drinks will be served in Plastic Glasses or Plastic Bottles only.
• Plastic should be disposed of in the bins provided, when empty.
• If there is a change to this procedure (we are learning and adapting all the time) then you will be informed.

The operation of catering will be as follows:

• This will operate in the same way as the Bar. The same staff will serve you both.
• There will be NO SERVICE at the kitchen, so please do not get up and queue there.
• Food will be served on paper plates and you will use plastic knives and forks. Everything should be disposed of in the bins provided when finished.
• If you need condiments, sachets will be provided and should be disposed of after.

The operation of the Facilities will be as follows:

• Initially, we just intend to use the downstairs toilets. Gents will use the newly refurbished changing room toilets and Ladies the 1^st Team Changing Room Toilets. If numbers require it, we will then expand to the upstairs toilets. Toilets will be signposted.
• We need to keep social distancing in the toilets, so no more than 2 people in the toilets at any one time. If necessary, wait outside until toilets become free. This will be policed by yourselves and not the club. Good sense must prevail.
• Toilet surfaces will be cleaned before use and at regular intervals during the opened period.
• You must wash hands and sanitise after using the Toilets.

We have tried to cover all aspects of your safety in our Risk Assessment, but if you see anything that is particularly unsafe or you have an idea for things that could be done better, please speak to John Grundy or myself, or email our COVID Team on COVID@sprufc.co.uk. Please do not plaster any issues over social media. We are doing our best to help you keep safe.

Remember, whilst enjoying yourself:

KEEP SAFE          CLEAN HANDS             SOCIALLY DISTANCE