Self Isolation Guidelines

You will need to be prepared to stay at home for 2-3 weeks if you are exposed to someone with COVID-19, are diagnosed with it yourself, or are instructed to due to recent travel.

As part of this, ideally you should have enough food and supplies to keep you and your family going.

Please do have a well stocked pantry and freezer with plenty of food (including pet food) and cleaning and sanitary items to help prevent the spread if someone in your home develops COVID-19.

Non-perishable items may include:

• Rice, pasta, cereals, grains, beans, tinned food (such as beans, tuna, fruit, vegetables), dried nuts and fruit, UHT milk, oil, and flavouring for some of your preferred ‘pantry’ dinners. Consider your preferred ‘pantry’ dinner menu when shopping.
• Pre-cooked meals which you can freeze, along with raw meat, vegetables and bread.
• For morale, include treat food such as lollies, chocolate, alcohol.
• Soap, cleaning and sanitary products, hand sanitiser, laundry detergent, tissues.

If you live alone, establish an isolation contact or contacts who you’ll be able to reach out to regularly in the event you need to self isolate. Ideally, this person should be ‘on the inside’ and should be able to deliver supplies to your front door.

Please stock up gradually and responsibly. Do not panic buy. Online grocery shopping is now widely available.

Self Isolation Do’s and Don’ts

Do’s:

• Separate yourself from the people you live with, where possible avoid being in the same room at once
• Only allow people who live with you to visit and stay
• Stay in a well ventilated room with a window that can be opened
• Ask friends, family members or delivery services to carry out errands for you
• Pre-register for online grocery shopping so you’re familiar with the service
• Make sure you tell delivery drivers to leave items outside for collection if you order online
• Clean toilets and bathrooms regularly
• Consider a bathroom rota if you have a single bathroom; the isolation person using the facilities last, before thoroughly cleaning the bathroom themselves
• Use separate towels from anyone else in the household
• Wash crockery and utensils thoroughly with soap and water; ideally in the dishwasher
• Stay away from your pets – if unavoidable, wash your hands before and after contact.

Don’ts:

• Invite visitors to your home or allow visitors to enter
• Go to work, school or public areas
• Use public transport, eg. buses, trains, taxis
• Share dishes, glasses, cups, eating utensils, towels, bedding, etc, with other people in your home.

Some other things to consider 

There are many things you and your family can implement at home (if you’re not yet self isolating). These range from simple common sense measures, to being prepared in case you’re required to self-isolate and/or schools and other public spaces are closed.

1. Try not to touch public surfaces with your fingers. Where possible, use knuckles rather than fingertips to flick light switches or press lift buttons, etc. Open push doors with your hips or elbows rather than your hands. Elbows can open many door handles. Using your sleeve is better than opening a door with a bare hand.
2. Practice good cough and sneeze etiquette. Cover your mouth with the inside of your elbow when coughing or sneezing unexpectedly. If you’re sick, then you should have disposable tissues handy and/or be at home.
3. Be prepared to cancel your attendance at large social events or avoid crowded public places. If you have minor cold symptoms, avoid such events.
4. Mind how you talk about COVID-19. It’s important to talk about COVID-19 with your family and children to relay preventative measures and minimise anxiety. Read this for more on how to speak to children.
5. Make sure you are getting your news from trustworthy, reliable sources. If following the news is making you anxious, take a break from it. Find accurate and reputable advice from the Government’s dedicated website.
6. Think about how you could lower your risk of contracting COVID-19 while still support the economy. Online shopping is our friend! Consider using paywave when shopping instore and carrying sanitiser in public for when handwashing is not possible.

You can check out the rest of our COVID-19 resources by clicking the link below.

COVID-19 Resources

Wishing you good health!