Monthly Archives: January 2021

Which small businesses can stay open in national lockdown?

Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
Which small businesses can stay open during the national lockdown? Here is the partial list of what businesses can remain open with different rules for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
England
Prime minister Boris Johnson announced a third national lockdown for England on Monday, January 5.
This third national lockdown is expected to last until March 31 as the coronavirus vaccines are rolled out and the population becomes immunised.
Small businesses that must close in England

non-essential retail, including clothing and homeware stores, vehicle showrooms (other than for rental), betting shops, tailors, tobacco and vape shops, electronic goods and mobile phone shops, auction houses (except for auctions of livestock or agricultural equipment) and market stalls selling non-essential goods
hospitality venues such as cafes, restaurants, pubs, bars and social clubs; with the exception of providing food and non-alcoholic drinks for takeaway (until 11pm)
accommodation such as hotels, hostels, guest houses and campsites, except for specific circumstances
leisure and sports facilities such as leisure centres and gyms, swimming pools, sports courts, fitness and dance studios, riding arenas at riding centres, climbing walls, and golf courses
entertainment venues such as theatres, concert halls, cinemas, museums and galleries, casinos, amusement arcades, bingo halls, bowling alleys,

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What is the UKCA mark and how does it affect my small business?

Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
Now that we’ve left the EU, small businesses need to think about changes to how they label their products, including the UKCA.
We clear up what the UKCA mark is and what you need to do to keep compliant.
What is the UKCA mark?
The UK Conformity Assessed (UKCA) mark, pictured left, is a marking for products on the market in Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales). It replaces the CE mark.

Do I need to use the UKCA marking?
If you’re selling goods within Great Britain – and they previously needed the CE mark – then yes. As well as goods that have previously needed the CE mark, it’s needed on aerosols which previously needed a ‘reverse epsilon’ marking, as shown below.

The UKCA came into effect on January 1 2021 once the Brexit transition period ended. However, an adjustment grace period has been allowed so you can still use the CE mark until January 1 2022 while you make adjustments. You should be looking to change to the UKCA mark as soon as possible though.
You only need to use the UKCA before January 1 2022 if all of the following apply:

Your product is for the market in

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