White and pink home-made face covering with wire nose bridge, of the type used during the COVID-19 pandemic, 2021

In June 2020, England first made face coverings mandatory on public transport and a month later, face coverings became compulsory in indoor settings like supermarkets. In both cases, there were medical exemptions that applied. Particularly when face coverings were first required, many people made their own or used masks that others had handmade. There were many different patterns available to make face coverings. This example has a wire nose bridge, which has been recommended to help improve the fit of fabric face coverings. This both makes them more effective and helps to reduce issues like glasses steaming up when wearing the face covering.

Hands, Face, Space was introduced as the government’s slogan for its COVID-19 strategy in September 2020 – emphasising the importance of face coverings to the government’s plans. Scientific research has found that wearing a face covering is effective at reducing the spread of COVID-19.