CORONAVIRUS infections have jumped significantly in 12 areas in England in the last week, data from Public Health England (PHE) has revealed.
Cases are rising fastest in areas such as Northampton and Manchester, while Birmingham is also at risk of local lockdown.
⚠️ Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates
Data from PHE shows cases in terms of per 100,000 of the population and calculates cases up to August 16.
Birmingham is sixth on the list and has seen an increase in cases from 22.4 to 30.0.
Ministers in Birmingham are set to meet today to discuss the possibility of a local lockdown.
Cases in the city have more than doubled in the last fortnight, with around 25 new cases per 100,000 of the population.
This is up from just 11 in the first week of August.
Birmingham City Council's leader Ian Ward said they wanted to avoid a lockdown to stop the local economy being disrupted even further.
Meanwhile, Northampton is top of the list after it witnessed a significant increase this week and went from 38.7 cases to 116.6.
Health chiefs have been battling outbreaks in the area after it was reported last week that 300 workers at a food factory caught the virus despite warnings of a local lockdown.
A total of 262 new cases were recorded in the town in the seven days to August 16, the equivalent of 116.6 per 100,000 people, up from 38.7 in the seven days to August 9.
Other areas with notable jumps include Manchester which went from 37.8 to 49.0 and Salford, a city in Greater Manchester where cases have risen from 24.3 to 36.7.
Nearby Bury has also jumped from 25.1 to 33.0.
Stoke-on-Trent has also seen a jump from 16.0 to 24.2.
Barnsley in South Yorkshire has jumped from 13.4 to 23.1 and local leaders in the area have warned that this could lead to a local lockdown.
Barnsley Council leader Sir Steve Houghton and the town’s director of public health, Julia Burrows said there had been a significant increase in the area of Wombwell.
Meanwhile, Oadby and Wigston in Leicester has gone from 12.4 to 22.8, it comes weeks after officials reassured residents that cases in the area were dropping.
Craven in North Yorkshire is also at risk after cases there jumped from 1.8 to 22.8.
In Coventry cases increased from 15.3 to 21.8, while in Woking cases jumped from 8.9 to 19.8 and in Richmond upon Thames they went from 5.6 to 19.2.
The increase in cases in the areas above come as cases in areas that had previously been forced to place residents under localised lockdowns have fallen.
Oldham has had just 200 new cases over the last week, with the rate dropping from 105.4 to 84.3.
Ministers are set to hold a meeting today to decide whether to increase, extend or decrease lockdown measures across Greater Manchester and parts of West Yorkshire.
Despite a drop in cases, Oldham still has the highest infection rate in the country.
In Leicester the rate continues to fall, down from 68.9 to 47.4, with 168 new cases.
The city became the first in Britain to face local restrictions, after an alarming rise in Covid-19 cases.
Tough measures were first introduced in late June to halt Covid-19, as the bug spread through food and clothing factories, and households.
Yesterday nail bars, salons and outdoors pools re-opened in the city.
But current rules banning gatherings in private homes and gardens will remain in place for now to prevent another rise.
Source: Read Full Article