Suffolk businesses are being encouraged to protect themselves by getting their staff tested for

COVID-19 twice a week, as part of a new campaign launched today.

The Yes 2 Test campaign complements the Government's roll-out of regular rapid testing for

everyone, which begins today, Friday 9 April 2021.

Businesses across Suffolk are being asked to commit to whole-staff lateral flow testing, either

through testing at their workplaces or encouraging staff to sign-up for home testing kits. Many businesses have already signed up to Yes 2 Test, such as Adnams, Notcutts and Berry Global, and this number is expected to grow as lockdown measures continue to ease and premises open again.

The Government's message is those that can work from home should continue to do so, however

shops, hospitality and leisure venues open from Monday.

Regular testing is vital in keeping Suffolk safe and helping us live-with and defeat Coronavirus.

Stuart Keeble, Director of Public Health at Suffolk County Council, said: "Twice-weekly testing is absolutely key in making sure we break the chain of infection as quickly as

possible.

"With one in three people with COVID-19 having no symptoms the virus can spread undetected and

as we know, this can have a devastating impact on a workplace. Businesses have had an incredibly

tough year and have adapted and changed to weather the storm – testing is another Covid measure

that must be undertaken. We must say Yes 2 Test."

There are a number of ways for staff to get tested, including testing at work or home testing kits.

Business owners have until Monday 12 April (11.59pm) to register at www.gov.uk for on-site

workplace testing for all staff, or to sign-up for Workplace Collect which enables staff to collect rapid

test kits from work and take them home to carry out twice weekly tests. Home testing kits are also

now widely available and these can be accessed either by ordering online, collection from community

testing sites, some pharmacies and PCR testing sites at designated times.

Suffolk County Council's mobile community teams are available to support workplaces with setting

up testing on site. The teams also run Test & Collect engagement days at workplaces to help

familiarise staff with how to test at home, report their tests and provide an initial supply of kits for staff

to take home prior to delivery of the Government's Workplace Collect orders. For information or to

book a team email [email protected]

Suffolk's business owners and managing directors are invited to sign-up to become ambassadors of

Yes 2 Test and share their experiences of implementing whole-site testing or incorporating regular

testing into their job requirements. For information about workplace testing in Suffolk visit

www.yes2test.co.uk.

Many Suffolk businesses and organisations are already supporting Yes 2 Test.

Sadie Lofthouse, Director of Culture & Performance, Adnams, said: "From the very beginning of the pandemic we have had three clear goals. To keep our employees,

our customers and our local communities safe, to protect a business that's 150 years old and to save

as many jobs as possible.

"One of the key things we can do to continue with those three goals is to make the best use of

Lateral Flow Tests. We were able to put some really good measures in place as we made all of our

sites Covid-secure, but it's inevitable that as we get busier and have more people on site, our teams

will come into contact with each other and customers more – even with social distancing in place.

"By asking everyone to test twice a week we are increasing the chance of picking up the

asymptomatic cases or those with very mild symptoms and we can then ensure those people are

supported to stay at home until they test clear again. We believe this will give employees, customers

and the communities in which we're based the confidence to start to return to a way of life that is

much more normal than we've all had to get used to in the past 12 months."

Chris Starkie, Chief Executive of New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership, said: "Testing is an important tool in preventing the spread of coronavirus and we would encourage all businesses to take up the offer of free tests for their employees.

"As well as protecting the health of your staff and customers by identifying cases in those with on

symptoms, it can minimise disruption to your business which could occur if large numbers of staff

need to self-isolate."