All hairdressers, beauty salons and barbers to collect customer data from 18 September

TEST and TRACE Update – England and Wales from the Hairdressing Council
 
From Friday 18 September, it will be mandatory for all hair salons, barbershops and beauty salons in England and Wales to collect customer information when attending their appointments! (We are awaiting information from Scotland and Northern Ireland to see if they will also be following this.)
 
You will need to log the customers name, contact details, date of appointment, time of arrival and time of departure.
 
In addition, on Thursday 24 September, the NHS Covid-19 app is being launched.
 
It will also be mandatory from this date, for all salons, barbershops and beauty salons in England and Wales to display their unique app ‘QR’ code on a poster positioned prominently in their front window or on the door. 
 
However, the business can choose to continue to take the customers information manually or via their computer booking system, or to use the app, but irrelevant of which you choose, the ‘QR” code/poster must be downloaded and visual to the customers to use if they so wish.
 
To access a QR code please log on to;  https://www.gov.uk/create-coronavirus-qr-poster
 
QR posters are unique to each venue – businesses can download posters for each of their premises if they have more than one in their Group. 
 
The customer does not have to download the app, they will simply scan the QR code with the camera on their phone when they arrive, and the app reads the code and checks them in. By using this app, it will give the customer a digital diary of where they have been and when.
 
QR codes apply to venues, not people, so mobiles won’t need them (they should still be following the safe working guidance on working in people’s homes).  Freelancers in salons don’t need to worry, the salon owner is responsible for this, but freelancers working from their own home and having customers coming to them will need a code displayed as they are working at fixed premises.
 
Please follow these rules as of the dates above. Most of you have been collecting information from your customers since the 4 July when industry reopened, this is now mandatory to do it, whereas before it was recommended within the Government guidance.