Subject to any last minute reversal of Government policy, Lantern Cross will be re-opening from July, for occupation at this stage by groups from no more than two households.
We have been giving very careful consideration to how best we can ensure both the safety of our cleaners and the safety of our tenants while continuing to provide the equipment and facilities that have led many of our tenants to say that Lantern Cross is even better than a home from home. Regrettably, while the national COVID-19 alert status remains at 3 (and possibly even if it falls to 2) we have to have regard to the possibility that a member of a party renting Lantern Cross will become capable of transmitting the infection while at the house, and may therefore contaminate surfaces or equipment. We have carried out a Risk Assessment, as required by Government, and we have concluded that the only practicable way to minimise risk while continuing to make available our wide range of facilities and equipment is to leave the house vacant for several days between lettings, clean to our normal high standards and then sanitise hand contact surfaces. The available scientific studies suggest that there is a very low risk that any active contamination will persist on surfaces for longer than 72 hours; leaving a gap of several days will therefore enable us to avoid the need to remove extra cooking utensils, books, garden furniture and play equipment, etc., that would otherwise be impracticable to sanitise between lettings, and, by doing this, we can continue to provide our full range of facilities. Unfortunately this approach means that we must cancel two bookings during the main summer period in order to leave the necessary space between occupancies, and we have effectively halved our capacity until such time as we can conclude that we can safely revert to normal changeover arrangements. We are, therefore effectively fully booked for all available weeks until early November, but we do have availability for the rest of the Autumn, for Christmas and for much of next year.
We do, of course, ask all our tenants to comply with Public Health England guidance on hand washing and personal hygiene and to Government guidance on social distancing between members of different households. The layout of Lantern Cross is helpful; members of two different households sharing the house can arrange to use separate bathrooms and WCs, separate staircases and separate entrances if they consider it appropriate to do so in order to comply with the guidelines.
Should anyone develop COVID-19 symptoms while at the house, we ask them to inform us immediately and to vacate the house as soon as possible if they are able to travel. If they are unable to travel, they will need to agree with us what action to take, and to compensate us for any extra costs or loss of revenue we may incur as a result.