Christmas will be a time for caution amid the celebrations, warns Sheffield business leader

However, provided we are mindful of the need for caution, we can still have a relaxing time.

We have the opportunity to restore some joy and excitement to our children.

They were been isolated from friends by remote schooling, then returned to school with restrictions placed on them.

Indeed, we shall have to assess the long-term effects of this on both their morale and mental wellbeing.

Care home residents, among the most vulnerable in our midst, will have been traumatised by their isolation from their usual family support networks and even now these relationships not fully restored.

So Christmas will be a challenging period for these residents as they try to re-engage with their families, while mitigating risk of further infection.

Shops and businesses will try, as far as restrictions allow, to recover from months of inactivity as Christmas is normally a good trading period for them.

Overall, this period is an opportunity for hard-pressed, front-line workers to recover from months of risks associated with their support for us .

Symbolism is important at this time and, as we know, how things are done is as key as what is done.

Many sacrifices have had to be made by us to protect the most vulnerable and we generally have complied.

However, as we go into the next phase of restrictions it would greatly aid our compliance if we had confidence in the credibility of the measures being outlined and that they are communicated effectively.

Given the consequences of the pandemic to our ways of life health and job security, it is vital all the lessons of previous restrictions are learnt and the necessary remedial action taken.

We cannot accept different restrictions being applied in different regions of the country without adequate rationale being effectively communicated and as importantly accepted.

Suspicions of a North-South divide will be realised if this is not done and essential local politicians fully consulted in all the measures both preventative and support.

Not involving local agencies at an early stage compromised some of the centrally controlled initiatives and hopefully will not replicated at what we hope are the closing chapters of the Pandemic.

While no reason to be complacent, we can have a degree of optimism about the much-publicised arrival of vaccines .

However until they are fully rolled, out we still have months of danger to be navigated.

Christmas should be a time of happiness, not sadness by our indiscipline causing more loss of life and jobs

What a contradiction if we put those we cherished most at danger by our very recklessness.

Let us enjoy the festive season, look after our nearest and dearest and look forward to a safer spring.