Groups of up to six people from different households in England will be able to exercise together outside from Monday, the Government has announced.

Sport and Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said this will allow team sport players to train together from a two-metre distance, or for people to take part in outdoor fitness sessions.

He said: “We have all become a nation of early morning walkers, (Joe) Wicks workout-ers and evening park runners, and many of us have discovered how valuable and therapeutic physical activity can be.

“And I hope that we’ll continue to make time for it even as life returns to normal.”

The Government will be publishing further guidance on the new rules from Monday, which will include advising people to wash their hands and avoid sharing sports equipment.

Outdoor gyms, playgrounds and swimming pools will remain closed.

Since May 14, people in England have been allowed to exercise for an unlimited time alone or with members of their household, and golf courses and tennis courts were also reopened.

Coronavirus graphic
(PA Graphics)

From Monday, elite athletes and professional sportsmen and women will also be able to resume competitive sport behind closed doors in England for the first time in three months.

Sports Minister Nigel Huddleston said: “We are working hard to get grassroots sport back up and running safely too, so that people can reunite with their own football, rugby or cricket teammates and get back on their pitches, fields or athletic tracks.

“But we will only do this when it is safe and appropriate to do so, based upon scientific advice.”