Sheldon retreat centre-Covid protections
Sheldon and Covid-19
Last updated January 2025
Why we (still) bother about this.
- We want every guest to go home as healthy as when you arrive, if not more so!
- We want our community and staff team to stay healthy to keep Sheldon running (hospitality workers have high rates of exposure)
- The long term risks of Covid accumulate with each additional infection. Even if the initial illness is 'mild' (that's just the body's protest against the virus entering your system) - the risks of longer term effects is real
- Covid is airborne (and so are flu, RSV, whooping cough, norovirus, etc). The air we breathe out drifts in the air like smoke. If we're breathing out viruses then other people will breathe them in. We can reduce the risks by making sure there is plenty of fresh air in the room and filtering viruses out of the air.
Here is what we do to help
- We aim to provide clear guidelines on how you can play your part.
- We reduce the risk of staff and guests bringing infection onto site.
- Sheldon offers good discretionary sick pay and testing for our staff.
- We ask guests to contact us to discuss before travelling to Sheldon if you have new symptoms or recent known contacts.
- Please do not travel here if you currently test positive for Covid or have reason to believe you have been exposed (eg a case in your household).
- We reduce the risk of sharing infections between us while we are together
- If you develop any new symptoms (even if you think it's nothing much) during your stay please ring the team on 01647-253914 - depending on circumstances we may arrange for testing, masking, moving to alternative accommodation, etc.
- We keep the number of people in communal spaces smaller than before
- We clean the air with HEPA air cleaners running in all main rooms
- We ventilate all main rooms with plenty of fresh air and have continuous monitoring of CO2 with text alerts for the team if levels rise over 750. We encourage guests to be pro-active in opening windows.
- Please wear a cosy layer of clothing to meals and meetings to keep you comfortable
- We support anyone who wishes to wear a face mask. We ask everyone to wear one for community prayers in chapel. (This is because numbers are unpredictable in chapel and there are fewer windows so harder to ventilate).
- We use testing, masking and air filtration to protect those giving and receiving a massage
Not every cough or sniffle is Covid. However, half of Covid infections are passed on in the early stages before symptoms arrive or while they are very mild. Thank you for agreeing to take a Covid test on request.
Cancellations
We have continued with our more generous arrangements for cancellations in the light of the ongoing uncertainties we all have to manage. We want you to have the confidence to make a booking while having a reasonable framework for flexibility where needed.
Useful websites
https://www.covidisairborne.org/
Zoe Covid tracker https://health-study.joinzoe.com/data#levels-over-...
The physics of masks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBJpvdZXxcs
