Parts of Hertfordshire are set to be placed into stricter Tier 3 measures after midnight on Wednesday to combat the spread of Covid.

While Hitchin and north Herts have escaped tougher guidelines in a bid to halt the spread of coronavirus other areas of the county have not been so fortunate.

The government has announced that four of the 10 district council areas in Hertfordshire (Broxbourne, Hertsmere, Three Rivers and Watford) will move to the very high level (Tier 3) of local Covid alert categories from a minute past midnight on Wednesday.

The other six district council areas in Hertfordshire - including North Herts District Council which covers Hitchin and surrounding areas - will remain at high alert level (Tier 2) but will be included alongside all other areas in England as part of the tier review planned for Wednesday.

In a statement, David Williams, leader of Hertfordshire County Council said: "We recognise the concerns that this escalation will prompt with both residents and businesses and the additional restrictions and tougher rules that this involves.

"The government has taken this decision in response to the very significant increase in case numbers across the county and due to the proximity of these four district areas to north London and Essex where infection rates have also been growing significantly.

"In recent weeks we have been stressing the crucial importance of everyone in Hertfordshire following the rules and guidance around social contact and distancing, wearing face-coverings when required and washing your hands regularly.

"The message remains clear - we must all stay disciplined and stick to the guidance and rules if we are to improve the situation in Hertfordshire."

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He also added that we must all now redouble these efforts, particularly as we all plan for how we will follow the rules over the Christmas and New Year period including, the Christmas bubble guidance.

"We must all keep playing our part to help reduce the number of cases in the county," he explained, adding: "so we can ultimately work towards returning to the type of lives we enjoyed before the pandemic.