Published: Tuesday, 30th November 2021
A mobile hairdresser has been prosecuted for breaching Covid restrictions during the last national lockdown. On 20 January 2021, Nicola Watts left her home in Rishworth Avenue in Rugeley and drove to the home of another person where she carried out the services of a hairdresser.
Environmental health officers issued Ms. Watts with a fixed penalty notice, set at £1,000, as an alternative to prosecution. The fixed penalty was not paid and Cannock Chase Council therefore prosecuted Ms. Watts for breaching Covid restrictions.
The matter was heard by Newcastle-under-Lyme Magistrates’ Court on 17 November 2021. Ms. Watts failed to enter a plea and was found guilty by the Court. She was fined £15,000, ordered to pay costs of £85, and a victim surcharge of £190.
Councillor Val Jones, Portfolio Leader for Community Engagement, Health & Wellbeing, said “Tragically, 1,820 deaths and 38,905 cases were recorded on the very day that this offence was committed, the worst day of the pandemic in the UK. Whilst people were staying at home to protect the NHS and to save lives, a very small minority ignored the restrictions. It has been an incredibly difficult time for businesses, made worse by competitors who continued to operate instead of doing their bit. Many people have suffered during the pandemic including those who have lost loved ones, those still recovering from the disease, those who have lost businesses, and the key workers who have given so much whilst working on the front line. It is for those people that taking this action is important.”
Photographed: Councillor Val Jones