BEING denied entry to a number of pubs in Warrington town centre ‘delighted’ the town’s director of public health.

Thara Raj says that she was turned away by three hospitality businesses in one evening that were full due to social distancing requirements.

The director did however, manage to enter a less-busy pub at the fourth time of asking.

But rather than being frustrated about being told she could not stay, Thara says she was pleased that businesses are following the guidance in place to keep people safe.

She said: “Pubs and restaurants in Warrington are very good at telling us and Public Health England what is happening.

“On current statistics, 10 hospitality businesses have reported a suspected case and we know about the outbreak at the The White Hart pub, so this is not a massive picture of doom and gloom.

“This is not me saying we can rest on our laurels, but we need to be sensible.

“I like to go out in the evening on a weekend and three pubs turned me away because they were full with social distancing in place.

“I was delighted by that. Luckily I got into the fourth place, but that to me is a great sign of social distancing and that our businesses are taking it really seriously.”

On the positive coronavirus case at The White Hart, Thara says that the individual did not show any symptoms, which made it difficult for staff and management to do anything further than they did.

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“I visited the pub to see if they could have done anything more than they said in their risk assessment, but if you are Covid-compliant and have asymptomatic staff, it is very difficult,” Thara added.

“While we are seeing new cases, we should not lose sight of the fact that people enjoy going out in Warrington and that it is a good place to socialise.

“It is also possible that people living in areas that are under local lockdowns have thought about visiting Warrington as it is not too far away, which might have contributed to our rate quadrupling.

“Cases are mainly being reported in 20 to 39-year-olds that are of working age, similar to the rest of the country, so we are not seeing anything different than anywhere else.”