Following the easing of restrictions relating to COVID-19 that forced the closure of its UK sites on 24 March 2020, Escape Hunt plc (LON:ESC) has announced that all eight of its venues in England will reopen on Saturday 11 July 2020. We expect to reopen our Edinburgh site in the coming weeks, pending an announcement from the Scottish Government. The Company is accepting bookings via its website ahead of the reopening.
The Company has re-commenced work in Norwich and Basingstoke, the two new sites which were put on hold as a result of the lock down. Both sites are expected to open in the coming months, bringing the number of Escape Hunt branded locations in the UK to 11.
The Company welcomes yesterday’s announcement by the Government of further support to the sector and expects to benefit from:
· A reduction of VAT from 20% to 5% running from 15 July 2020 to 12 January 2021; and
· A Job Retention Scheme Bonus of £1,000 for every worker brought back from furlough and employed until the end of January 2021.
The Company’s priority through re-opening is to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of its staff and customers, and comprehensive measures have been put in place to allow it to meet and exceed the social distancing and hygiene standards required. More details can be found at https://escapehunt.com/uk/play-safe/ .
Richard Harpham, CEO of Escape Hunt, commented : “We are delighted to be unlocking the doors to our 5* experiences across England and can’t wait for our customers to begin enjoying our escape rooms and outdoor adventures again. For any customers still unable to travel to our venues, we are pleased to announce that we will be expanding the availability of our Remote Escape Room Experiences over the coming weeks.“
