The Essex city is one of many places up and down the country struggling to function properly due to Covid staff shortages
Until a month ago, pub landlord Scott Jones knew only a handful of people who had got Covid. But since then, the majority of the people he knows have had the virus – including his young son, his assistant, who was off work for 10 days, and the people he depends on to deliver supplies to his Chelmsford pub, the Railway Tavern.
“It was like the perfect storm, it all happened at once,” said Jones, 40, who was left trying to juggle it all with his partner, on top of a 40% drop in pub takings. “There’s so many knock-on effects of it. Every day seems to bring a new challenge.”
The Essex city is just one of many places up and down the country increasingly struggling to function properly due to Covid staff shortages – affecting everything from bin collections to the local hospital and football team. According to the latest government figures, on Friday there were 410 new cases reported in Chelmsford and one death. In the first week of January, there were 3,198 new cases recorded.
