Covid-19 cases remain stable in Telford and Wrekin and Shropshire

The number of new coronavirus cases in the borough of Telford and Wrekin remains stable whilst in the Shropshire Council area cases have sightly fallen, the latest figures show.

There were 45 new cases reported for Telford and Wrekin during the seven days 12-18 April, four more than the previous seven-day period.

The seven-day infection rate for Telford and Wrekin is 25 cases of Covid-19 per 100,000.

In the Shropshire Council area, there were 30 new cases were reported during the period 9-15 April. This was a decrease of 2 cases (6%) compared to the previous week.

The seven-day infection rate for Shropshire was 9.3 cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 of the population.

Shropshire Council reports that during the week 9-15 April 35% of cases were in the Shrewsbury & Atcham area, 52% were in north Shropshire and 13% were in south Shropshire.

There were two people diagnosed with Covid-19 in Telford and Shrewsbury hospitals, as of 18 April. Sadly, one Telford & Wrekin resident died within 28 days of a positive Covid-19 test.

Liz Noakes, Telford and Wrekin's Director for Public Health, said:

"For six weeks now, our local figures have fluctuated between 30 and 60 cases remaining broadly stable.

"Local outbreaks can significantly impact on the total case numbers we have; currently we have two clusters of cases in Hadley, Leegomery, Oakengates and Ketley Bank making up a significant proportion of cases.

“The council is works hard to support organisations experiencing an outbreak and stands ready to act any future ones.

"We ask everyone to please continue to be cautious, follow the rules and get tested twice a week."

Rachel Robinson, Shropshire Council’s director of public health, said:

“It’s encouraging to see cases going down in Shropshire and that we have one of the lowest infection rates in the region.

“The number of people in Shropshire doing a regular Lateral Flow Test is growing, and this is welcome news in our fight against coronavirus.

“The Lateral Flow Tests can provide results in around 30 minutes, give us an accurate picture of the virus rates in communities, and play a huge part in helping us to continue to drive down the number of infections and therefore save lives.

“While we’re still seeing a small decline in cases across our county, this decrease is slowing down.

“Coronavirus is still very much with us and people are still being infected with COVID-19. As restrictions have eased somewhat, we just can’t afford to be complacent. It’s vital, more than ever, to remain vigilant and continue to follow the basics – hands, face and space – to ensure that we do not cause a spike in our infection rates.

“We urge everyone to continue to play their part to help minimise the spread of the virus and not to put your health and those of others at risk.”