A publican says he has been serving fewer customers ever since venues were allowed to reopen indoors.

Josh Gibson, owner of The Crown in Billericay, has been surprised at how customer levels have dropped since Boris Johnson lifted restriction on indoor hospitality in May.

Prior to that, when hospitality was only permitted outdoors, he says he was fully booked every day.

“When hospitality opened the doors inside it got worse for us, a lot of people seemed to disappear,” he explained.

“I think that may be because people from the area could travel to places such as London to bars and pubs that had been closed, that maybe didn’t have outdoor space, so we seemed to lose quite a few people.”

Following all remaining hospitality restrictions being lifted on Monday, July 19 – dubbed ‘Freedom Day’ – Josh is hoping for a boost in trade.

“I’m hoping the loosening of restrictions will encourage people to venture back. I think people who want to go out in groups of more than six will feel like they can now they are not confined to single tables."

However, he reflected that people may not feel ready to return, following a year-and-a-half of restrictions.

He added: “Some people you haven’t seen in ages, and while some have started coming back, the trading level is still quite quiet and has been this week despite the changes.”

The publican’s experience is reflected in Google data, which shows that while shops, restaurants and entertainment venues in Basildon saw a boost in visitors following the reopening of indoor hospitality in May, footfall remained below levels before the Covid pandemic.

The data comes from Google which uses location data from phones and other personal devices to track trends in people's movement in different parts of their daily lives.

It compares footfall in areas where there is retail and recreation such as restaurants, cafes and shopping centres to a five week-baseline period recorded before the Covid-19 crisis.

The figures showed in Basildon, average activity across these areas was 23 per cent below normal levels across the two weekends – May 8-9 and May 15-16 – prior the lifting of restrictions on indoor hospitality on May 17.

On the Saturday and Sunday of the Spring Bank Holiday on May 31, increased activity meant it was 12 per cent below normal levels.

Then across the final two weekends with data – July 3-4 and July 10-11 – footfall fell to 14 per cent below pre-pandemic levels.

Across the UK, average activity in retail and recreation areas increased from 35 per cent below the baseline over the weekends of May 8-9 and May 15-16, to 18 per cent below across July 2-3 and July 12-13.

The weekend of the Spring Bank Holiday saw a peak in visitors with activity just 11 per cent down on pre-pandemic levels.