The more I look at the situation and consider the benefits and hindrances of social distancing in many places, the more I'm beginning to realise how it's simply impractical as a long term solution in many settings.
Schools: Social distancing in schools, especially at an overly cautious 2m, is going to reduce the level of education that we can deliver to children, that's a fact. No amount of online learning can substitute a face to face lesson with a qualified teacher, and using the part time approach is, inevitably, going to lead to one or two aspects of children's education being significantly worsened. Given the risk to children is so infinitesemally small, could it not just be accepted that socially distancing pupils is impractical and causes more damage than it does good? If we ask teachers to avoid using staff rooms for breaktimes to prevent the spread, prevent children from going 'off campus' at break times and give the school a thorough clean every day after use, surely the risk of the virus spreading isn't that large (children are shown to rarely if ever spread to adults) that it justifies lowering the standard of education that we deliver, which will have lifelong implications.
Transport: This is a difficult one. A far more sensible and clear policy needs to be devised than is currently in place. On long distance intercity services, simply move to a system of compulsory reservations, in which in each bay of two one seat is available and in each table two out of four seats are available. Enforce compulsory mask wearing and declassify first class for the medium term until this crisis is over with. This would put capacity at just under 50%, which combined with asking people to drive, I would think should be sustainable for intercity services. Commuter services are a difficult solution admittedly. We cannot allow the 'sardines in a can' style crowding that was commonplace before to return, as this would indeed risk overwhelming the health board and make a very fast spreading ground. Enforce compulsory mask wearing, and perhaps you could enforce a rule that you if you travel you must have a seat, otherwise the system risks being completely overcrowded. With mask wearing, a continued emphasis on 'Work from home' and emphasising transport should only be used where walking, cycling or driving isn't possible, this may just work, provided we were able to a more 'full' timetable. Exceptions would have to be made for those who were needing to catch a train but where capacity was full, but if we actively discourage transport use as far as possible for the mean time then this system may work.
Workplaces: Social distancing in certain workplaces is indeed possible. In office settings all desks should be kept 2m apart where possible, and perhaps perspex screens installed to prevent spread via droplets. In retail setting this becomes more difficult, but I think reducing the 2m down to 1m would certainly be a step in the right direction. Contactless payments where possible, and if we enforced mask wearing then this would drive the risk down to negligible levels. Hand sanitiser available for customers upon entry and exit (perhaps compulsory?) to prevent spread via touching surfaces/items.
Hospitality: This is a more difficult industry to try and distance. Fast food and takeaway outlets should offer drive through and takeaway services only (ie no 'sitting' in McDonalds or KFC) and enforce 1m queueing systems. Cafes and restaurants could simply work on a reservation only basis, with socially distanced (1m) tables allowing for small groups to visit together without risking spreading to everyone in the building. This would simply be a case of 'phone up' before you want to go in and see if there's availability, anything from a week to 5 minutes before you are intending to visit. It may be a small inconvenience, but it would certainly be better than not allowing these establishments to open which would effectively kill the industries.
Pubs/Clubs: This is arguably one of the toughest industries to try and reopen safely. Pubs would almost certainly be limited to a certain capacity, but with enforced 1-2m distancing they will simply not be sustainable as in many cases that would allow little more than 2-3 customers inside. Perhaps a more table style service would work in these settings, with ordering happening through an app (Wetherspoons for instance), however given the sheer number of people that frequent these places on a weekend especially, reopening these establishments with any significant level of social distancing required is not viable. It's going to have to be a decision to either open with minimal restrictions or stay closed until case numbers really start to fall.
Tourism/Hotels: Tourist hotspots are going to be tricky to manage admittedly, however if we have a slightly stricter enforcement of distancing than we do at the moment (Bournemouth beach this weekend for instance), then I see no reason why these couldn't open at a reduced capacity. For 'walk-around' attractions such as museums, galleries etc. these would simply need to be booked in advance, and for outdoor spots (Highlands, Wales, Beaches) we would simply need a slightly more visible and consistent police enforcement on social distancing to ensure people aren't encouraged to break the rules. For cities such as London where it's often difficult to keep 2cm let alone 2m, it's going to be very tough. Perhaps pedestrianisation of many of the 'busy' streets (Oxford, Regent etc) could be done so that distancing would then be possible.
I think the key thing we need to do first of all is move the 'standard' distance down to 1m, as this is certainly a step in the right direction. The measures I have proposed above are more workable in my view, but only in the short/medium term. If we want to get the economy into a better state, social distance is simply impossible for more than another 3-4 months. I stand by what I said before in that I don't see why under 55's should be required to distance when the risk posed to them is literally tiny , but aside from advising the elderly and those with underlying conditions to keep their distance, I really don't see how social distancing can continue much beyond August/September, without the complete collapse of the economy, as it would simply be unviable and capacity would be reduced to a point where it wouldn't be possible to return the economy to a healthy state.
Abandoning social distancing has negative consequences for the small minority of the population who are most at risk of the disease.
Economic collapse has very negative consequences for everyone and in my view is something we should be trying much harder to avoid than suppressing the virus, given the peak is now past. That's not to say we should abandon our measures completely yet as that would be dangerous and almost certainly cause a second peak, but we need to start making it clear that the next few months/years are going to be more about protecting the economy and our way of life, not waiting until the death rate gets to 0, which is what many people on social media seem to be waiting for before they return to work/send kids back to school.