Covid-19 Guidance for Hairdressers, Barbers, Beauticians, Nail Bars, Massage Therapists & Wellbeing Practitioners

Businesses in the health and beauty sector, such as hairdressers, barbers and Hair salon with visorbeauticians are under a legal duty to take reasonable measures under regulation 21 of the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (Wales) (No. 4) Regulations 2020 to minimise the risk of exposure to coronavirus. Failure to do so could result in enforcement action. 

November 27th, 2020

Premises / COVID-19 Risk Assessment

• Assess your premises to ensure you are safe to open
• Undertake a thorough clean and install hand sanitisers in multiple locations before reopening
• Undertake a COVID-19 risk assessment for your business (this doesn’t need to be written down if you have fewer than 5 workers or are self-employed - see the Welsh Government website for further details

Employees

• No employee to attend the workplace if: they have COVID-19 symptoms, they are a confirmed positive case, they are a member of the same household as someone who has COVID-19, they have been told to self-isolate by TTP or have been in recent close contact with a confirmed positive case
• It is mandatory for them to wear a face covering if they travel to work on public transport or if they have to car share
• Ensure employees read, understand and fully comply with your COVID-19 related safety procedures

PPE / Face Coverings

• Staff to wear a type II mask AND a clear visor for haircuts and treatments to the body
• When completing high risk close contact treatments on the face (see list in link above), wear a type IIR fluid resistant surgical face mask (FRSM) plus eye protection and disposable gloves and apron – this will allow the client to remove their face covering temporarily for treatments on the face.
• Ensure staff are trained in how to put on / take off PPE.
• Clients / visitors (age 11 and over) to wear face covering (legal requirement) unless they have a reasonable excuse not to wear one• Use disposable items where possible / ensure non-disposable items are cleaned and laundered between uses

Physical Distancing

• Make sure employees maintain 2 metre social distancing at all times (including breaks)
• Rearrange premises so that workstations are 2 metres apart
• As you are unable to maintain social distancing when serving a client, increase the frequency of hand washing and surface cleaning
• Avoid face-to-face working whenever possible
• Install screens at payment desks
• Use floor markings and signage to remind workers / clients to maintain physical distancing wherever possible
• Only provide a waiting area if physical distancing can be maintained

Appointments / Record Keeping

• Appointments to be booked in advance – no walk-ins and advise clients to arrive at their scheduled time
• Maintain contact details of clients and visitors for 21 days - Test Trace Protect (TTP) purposes, if they are not provided, do not let them on your premises
• Ask questions of clients on arrival to ensure they are not: experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms, awaiting a coronavirus test result or tested positive

Hygiene / Cleaning

• Ensure clients use hand sanitiser on arrival
• Ensure cleaning/disinfection products are appropriate for purpose
• Always refer to instructions for dilution and contact times of cleaning products
• Develop enhanced cleaning protocol for instances where contamination from suspect/confirmed cases; using cleaning product compliant with BS EN 14476 (virucidal) or 1000ppm chlorine and ensure PPE used for such cleaning is safely removed, double bagged & stored for 72 hours before disposal
• Cleaners to have appropriate PPE available i.e. disposable gloves and aprons (goggles to be worn if decanting chemicals where there is a risk of splashing)
• Space appointments to allow for frequent cleaning of work areas, including client chairs, treatment beds and guest seating• Clean shared equipment between users
• Provide clean towels and gowns for each customer if needed to be used
• Frequent cleaning of objects and surfaces that are touched regularly
• Ensure public toilets are kept open, carefully managed (include paper towels / hand dryer) and well ventilated
• Use signs and posters to build awareness of good handwashing techniques
• Remove waste from work area at the end of a shift
• Don’t provide reading materials such as magazines
• Encourage staff not to wear their uniforms at home or to / from work, to change uniforms daily and to wash immediately after use
• Make tissues available for clients in case they need to cough or sneeze, discard them in a bin and wash their hands
• Do not share crockery, cutlery or food
• Store personal items separately from other peoples