Society activities will be subject to two-metre social distancing restrictions, even though higher education institutions were permitted to relax this rule to one metre earlier this month, the Central Societies Committee (CSC) announced today.
In an email to societies, the CSC said: “While relaxed social distancing restrictions of 1 meter applies within Higher Education Institutes we have been informed that this applies only to academic activities, so all society activity will be subject to the 2-meter rule.”
The CSC has also recommended that each society appoint one or two “covid officers” to “ensure that the society is up to date on any COVID related regulations or changes”. Ongoing “covid training” will be provided by the CSC.
Grants will be made available to facilitate virtual speaker events, and Zoom accounts will be made available. The email also said that the CSC has “made good progress on both the procurement of live stream studio equipment for events and on the renovation of 191 Pearse street (TAW)”.
Societies are permitted to hold off-campus events in line with public health guidelines.
The CSC also announced today that there would be no freshers’ fair this year. There will instead be a focus on online events.
“We recommend that each society should focus on what we know can occur, which is online activity, for now in-person activity will be considered on an ongoing basis, as restrictions etc. evolve”, the email said.
The email added that a “subvention will be available to each society to help with any loss of income from a reduction in membership”.
The government this month announced that universities and colleges will be permitted to relax the two-metre social distancing rule to one metre when in lectures or classes.
In guidelines for higher-education institutions published earlier this month, the government said that while the two-metre rule should be maintained “under all circumstances possible”, there will be instances where “teaching cannot be delivered while maintaining 2m distance between students”.
“Under such circumstances”, the guidelines said, “the distance between student seats or workstations may be reduced to (but not less than) 1m”.
Staff are advised to wear face shields, visors or other protective equipment – provided by the universities – if the social distancing rule is relaxed.
