What a glorious happy, nappy Monday!
IT was the longed-for day when simple activities we once took for granted finally resumed.
In what Boris Johnson called a ‘small step towards freedom’, millions across England yesterday allowed themselves to hope the worst is over at last.
For some, that was a round of golf or an outdoors swim – while for others, such as six new mothers and their babies from an NCT group, it was a chance to meet in person for the first time. With a miniheatwave due to bring 24C (75F) temperatures to the south-east from today, it was, he said, a moment to feel that the ‘months of sacrifices’ were worth it – although ‘we must proceed with caution’.
Across England, groups of up to six – or two households – took advantage of being allowed to socialise in parks and gardens again.
Outdoor sports facilities can also now reopen after the stayat-home order ended.
Surely the first to take advantage of the new rules was a group of golfers who hit the fairways at one minute past midnight.
Seven teams used glow-inthedark balls and floodlit greens at the Morley Hayes Golf Club in Ilkeston, Derbyshire. Managing director Andrew Allsop said: ‘I think the buzz has been made even buzzier because it’s such great weather forecast this week.’
Across the country, swimmers braved outdoor pools after months out of the water, with Hampton Pool in southwest London open – and busy – from 4.45am.
In Hyde Park, central London, writer and poet Jemma
‘Such great weather’
Amos, 26, was joined by her mother Joanna, 63, for a chilly dip in her beloved Serpentine Lido. ‘It may sound trivial compared to everything else going on, but outdoor swimming is probably the thing I
missed most over the last few months,’ she said. ‘I have definitely missed waking up at the crack of dawn to swim with complete strangers.’
Also happy at the return of organised outdoor exercise were tennis players at Grantham Tennis Club in Lincolnshire.
Among those enjoying the spring weather in somewhat more relaxed fashion were six new mothers who enjoyed a picnic with their babies on Tooting Common, south London.
The gathering was within the rules as it was part of the local mother and baby group organised by parents’ charity NCT. Previously they had met only on Zoom. One, Amanda Kemp, 36, said: ‘We’re all excited to be out and be able to socialise without having to walk around the park.
‘For the babies as well being together and seeing how they all interact is great.’
Crowds of young people also gathered in Hyde Park in Leeds.
And friends Camille McPhail, Audrey-Rose Skinner and Neave Green went punting on the Cam in Cambridge as they celebrated being allowed to meet up with a champagne breakfast.
English Heritage also reopened some of its outdoor spaces including the grounds of Dover Castle in Kent and Whitby Abbey in North Yorkshire.
Earlier sports minister Nigel Huddleston said the easing of measures amounted to ‘cautious baby steps’ out of lockdown and warned that police would intervene if rules were breached.
In Wales the ‘stay local’ order ended on Saturday, Scotland’s stay home order is to end on Friday, while in Northern Ireland up to six people, or two households, will be able to meet outdoors from Thursday.
THANKS to its hideously one-eyed report into links between its properties and colonialism, the National Trust has rightly taken a great deal of flak in recent weeks.
So we are pleased to report on an excellent decision it has made – to plant 20million trees on Trust land by 2030.
Channelling the Mail’s Be a Tree Angel appeal, in which readers donated hugely to various tree-planting causes, the initiative will protect landscapes, encourage wildlife and cut carbon levels.
It will be highly popular – and a happy reminder that the organisation hasn’t completely lost touch with its members.