Stocks to reopen to ‘Bailiwick bubble’ visitors in March

On Monday Sark became the first part of the Bailiwick to move to Stage 1 of the lockdown exit, which allowed two households to bubble and outdoor gatherings of up to five people, as long as they maintained social distancing. Non-public workplaces could operate with 10 staff members outside and five inside.

‘The island of Sark, thankfully, remains free of Covid-19 primarily due to the compliance of the whole community, closely guided and advised by the health professionals in Guernsey,’ Mr Armorgie said. ‘Here at Stocks Hotel, we are cautiously planning for the safest and most practical means of easing towards reopening the hotel. We are doing this in close communication with the authorities in Guernsey and Sark.’

The hotel optimistically plans to reopen to guests, initially for residents from within the Bailiwick of Guernsey ‘bubble’ only, from Friday 26 March.

‘We will then see what the 2021 season holds for all of us,’ he said.

Conseiller Sandra Williams, who chairs the tourism committee, was hopeful the island could open up to Bailiwick travel as soon as is practical.

‘We very much appreciated the support from Guernsey and Alderney last season and look forward to welcoming them back,’ she said. ‘Island hopping is very much the way forward again this year.’

Sark School welcomes back students

SARK SCHOOL was the first education setting in the Bailiwick which was able to welcome all of its students back on site.

On Monday, when the island progressed to Stage 1 of the exit from lockdown, pupils and teachers were excited to head back into the classrooms, following social distancing rules.

Head of Sark School Dr Nicholas Roberts said students and parents dealt ‘admirably’ with the challenges of remote learning.

‘This would not have been possible without the hard work, cooperation and support of our wonderful parents and carers.

‘We’ve required their support and help more than ever over the past few weeks.’

His thanks were also extended to the school team for going above and beyond, working tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure that pupils’ learning continued in as uninterrupted a fashion as possible.

‘It has been wonderful to welcome the children back to Sark School,’ he added.

‘There were smiles and cheers aplenty as they walked through the school gates and reconnected with their friends.

‘We are one extended family here at Sark School and every member of our school community was incredibly happy to return to relative normality.’