UCL SU bars close early due to rising Covid cases

The UCL Students’ Union made the decision today to close all their bars ‘a couple of days earlier than normal’


The UCL Students’ Union has made the decision to close all Union bars “prematurely for the Christmas break” one day before the end of term.

This decision has been made in response to the rapidly rising number of Covid cases on campuses and in London.

A spokesperson for the SU told The London Tab that “closing early protects our student staff team from the increasing risk of travelling to and from work.”

The UCL SU announced their decision to close all bars today through an Instagram story

Yesterday, December 15, there were 78,610 Covid cases reported – the highest daily figure of the pandemic. The five areas with the biggest rises are all in London (Southwark, Lambeth, Hackney & City of London, Islington and Lewisham). Omicron is now thought to be the most dominant strain in London, making up an estimated 60.1% of cases.

In response to this rising number of cases the UCL SU announced their decision to prematurely close all Union bars on @theunionbars Instagram story today.

When asked for comment, a SU spokesperson said that “closing early protects our student staff team from the increasing risk of travelling to and from work,” and went on to apologise to “those who’d planned to visit us this week.” They highlighted that bars will hopefully re-open in term two.

During a press conference last night, Chris Whitty advised the public to only attend social events which “really matter” over the festive period if they want to enjoy a more normal Christmas. Whitty also stated that the route back to a more normal track was the booster programme. A total of 24 million boosters and third doses have been administered in the UK so far. Booster vaccinations are now available for everyone aged 18 or over.

While the Union’s decision to close bars before the break isn’t ideal for our social lives, it will hopefully keep students and staff safe ahead of the festive period.

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