Restrictions on going out and shielding in Scotland

On 5 January 2021 mainland Scotland moved to a temporary lockdown with new ‘level 4’ coronavirus restrictions in place to stop the virus from spreading. The Government states if you live in an area which is under level 4 restrictions you must stay at home as much as possible and can only leave your home (or garden) for an essential purpose. The islands remain in level 3. You can check what level your area is in using the Government’s postcode checker.

There are some reasons where you can leave your home. We have listed these below as well as more about the level 4 and level 3 restrictions. There is also advice for those who were previously asked to shield. If you want to find out which level your local area is at you should visit the Scottish Government Website.

Extended households

In both level 3 and level 4 people who live in different places can form an ‘extended household’ where you can act and will be treated as one household at all levels. You are allowed inside each other’s homes and do not need to stay two metres apart.
When forming an extended household rules apply:

One of the households should be a person who lives alone or who lives only with children under 18 years old

If two adults are in a relationship and they do not live together, they, and any children they each live with, can agree to form an ‘extended household’

A household must not form an ‘extended household’ with more than one other household

Households can stop being ‘extended households’ at any time but should not then form an extended household with a new household for at least 14 days.

Shared parenting

Where parents do not live in the same household, children can move between their parents’ homes, this includes both supervised and unsupervised contact.