Phase 4 relaxed restirctions will bring relief for bars and entertainment, but also good news for families holding funerals

The move to phase four of WA’s COVID-19 recovery this Saturday will be cause for celebration in bars and entertainment venues across the State, but it also good news for families who come face-to-face with grief.

Funerals reached a five-person attendance limit during the peak of the pandemic restrictions, leaving families with the painful choice of who could be present to farewell their loved one.

That number has slowly increased in recent months, but on Saturday, the cap will be removed altogether.

Amity Rose Funerals owner Sandra Woonings will be happy to see the end of the restrictions, after sympathising with families who had their final goodbyes compromised.

She said the impact the restrictions had on families who lost loved ones during that period could be long-lasting.

“It was really hard for families, for different reasons,” she said.

“It was hard to pick who those five people would be, or when it was at the 100-person limit, to choose and contact these people.

“We had a few people who chose to have the service later down the track and I know there are families who are doing that.”

She said lots of families had chosen to live-stream funerals.

“But even though they had this, in some ways I think they felt like they didn’t have their funeral service and definitely not the way they wanted to,” she said. “There were times where we had to explain the rules and just say we have to do the best we can in this situation.”

On Saturday, the 100 and 300-person caps will be removed for all gatherings in WA, with limits to be determined by the 2sqm capacity rule.

Patrons will no longer need to be seated for service at venues such as pubs and concert halls.

Gyms can operate unstaffed and live events can go ahead — with 50 per cent capacity limits imposed on the State’s major venues such as Optus Stadium and RAC Arena. Phase 5, expected to take effect on July 18, will remove all restrictions in WA, except for the hard interstate border and travel bans for remote Aboriginal communities.