December 2020

Following the issuing of new Tier restrictions for England, MRS has issued new guidance interpreting the restrictions, specifying the implications for face-to-face data collection. The new MRS guidance applies to face-to-face data collection activities conducted in England from Wednesday 2 December.

Some points to note from the new guidance:

• Whilst this guidance is similar to the previous England Tier guidance it is not the same, e.g. there are new requirements about travel and moving between Tiers, and research practitioners must familiarise themselves with the new requirements.
• Research practitioners have a responsibility to protect participants and the reputation of the profession.
• Research practitioners must undertake risk assessments of any proposed essential face-to-face data collection exercise before beginning the activity.

Full details including other issues such as travel, social distancing, facial coverings can be found here in the new guidance.

Last week MRS also issued new guidance on the Tier system in Scotland including the new requirements regarding travel and vehicle sharing which were introduced on 20 November. This guidance can be found here.

The MRS Standards Team are continuing to review and update the MRS guidance as and when required. The existing MRS Covid-19 guidance documents continue to apply supplementing the guidance issued today:

• Undertaking Safe Face-to-Face Data Collection
• Undertaking Safe Face-to-Face Mystery Shopping
• Guidance on Facilities Used for Face-to-Face Data Collection

If you have any queries about the MRS Code or any of the MRS’ Covid-19 guidance please contact the MRS Standards Team via the MRS Codeline service ([email protected]).