THIRSTY Barrovians eager for a pint travelled to Ulverston in an effort to evade restrictions on gatherings.

People in the Barrow borough - including Dalton and Askam - are currently banned from mixing households under the Tier 2 category amid soaring rates of coronavirus.

But Ulverston falls under the boundaries of South Lakeland, which is still under Tier 1 - meaning people can still meet in pubs in groups of no more than six.

Paul Aston, manager of the King’s Head in Ulverston, said he had to refuse some customers over the weekend because they were from Barrow.

“We are now having to identify if people are coming from Barrow or if they are local people because obviously I can’t take in six people from Barrow and sit one on each table so it’s a bit of a nuisance," he said.

“We have a big police presence so I’ve felt quite supported by them. They came in several times during the afternoon and evening and they were approaching people at tables and checking where they are from and making sure that we were sticking to the Covid-19 rules.”

The Government is currently advising people not to travel to and from the higher tier areas unless it is an essential journey.

This means anyone living in tier one should avoid visiting regions in tier two and three – although there are a few exceptions including travelling for work or education.

Mr Aston said: “It’s not really a nice experience for those who are being questioned by the police.

"I had one table of six in, who were all from Ulverston and entitled to sit in this group, but one of them had a driving licence registered to an address in Barrow, which was his mum’s address when he first passed his test but he now lives with his girlfriend in Ulverston.

“I guess the reality is that we are all just that little bit more on edge now as well because none of us want to get a fine and we are just trying to do our job."

And he added: "I have had to ask a few people to leave because they keep forgetting to put their mask on and it’s just not worth the fine.”