With the long Easter weekend about to get underway, police are reminding people in Hadleigh and the surrounding villages to stay disciplined within the new rules to reduce the spread of covid.

Police insists with the 'stay at home' rule at an end and the new regulations now in place since Monday (29 March), including the rule of up to six people or two households able to meet outside, it is important people ask themselves if their journey is necessary with people needing to apply caution and common sense.

With no definition of 'local', the guidance is to minimise travel and it's important people remember that this is guidance and not regulation, so police will not be able to enforce this element of it.

T/Supt Simon Mills said: "It's fair to say that following on from the change in restrictions nationwide and levels of coronavirus virus falling in recent weeks, our policing approach will also adjust appropriately, however we will still use the tried and tested four Es approach of engaging, explaining and encouraging and will not hesitate to take enforcement action where necessary, where there is a blatant or persistent disregard for the law.

"We, like we hope the people of Suffolk, are cautiously optimistic about the future but we still cannot be complacent and we urge you to use carefully considered judgement.

"Minimise travel, don't car share, avoid places that are likely to be busy, stay outdoors and wherever you are please return home at the end of the day with no overnight stays.

"With Easter this weekend we will be focussing on those locations that are likely to draw large numbers of people over the long weekend so we will have visible presence. We will also focus on breaches of the rules where indoor gatherings are concerned such as parties or profit-motivated events and/or raves.

"Our officers have always tried to strike the right balance between encouraging people to stay within the rules and enforcing them more rigorously where there have been breaches.

"We still need to guard against complacency such as the threat of new variants and while the roadmap rolls out over the coming weeks, we still need to protect ourselves, each other and the NHS by abiding by the restrictions. I'd urge everyone to continue to play their part and do the right thing as the vast majority of the people of Suffolk have done over the past 12 months."

While positive Covid cases to drop in Suffolk, Babergh, which includes Hadleigh in its figure, has not dropped according to the latest figures with 15 cases confirmed this week.