Cases of coronavirus in Wiltshire continue to rise as the county starts to see the impact of the Delta variant.

As of Monday, June 28, in the last seven days, there have been 365 new cases in Wiltshire, compared to 222 in the previous week.

The current rate of cases per 100,000 in Wiltshire in the last seven days is 73 per 100,000 people which continues to be below the national average of 128.

There have been 847 registered deaths in total that included Covid-19 on the death certificate up to June 11, which is the same as the last month or so.

The mortality rate remains at 169.4 per 100,000 which remains lower than the England rate of 231.8 per 100,000 but higher than the south west rate of 148.8.

Director for public health in Wiltshire, Kate Blackburn said: “What we’re starting to see is the high transmissibility of the Delta variant, coinciding with people now able to do more things and see more people.

“Of course that combination means the case numbers are increasing.”

The highest number of cases is in the 20 to 24-year-olds, however, this increase has been seen across all age groups.

Mrs Blackburn says local hospitals are treating more Covid patients than in previous weeks but in comparison is lower than seen in previous waves.

This, the public health boss said, shows the impact of the vaccine but urged the public to be cautious to continue to reduce the risk of contracting the virus.

As of the afternoon of June 28, there were 55 settings with cases of coronavirus and more than 1,500 pupils self-isolating.

So far in June we have had 178 cases in educational settings reported to the public health team.

The main message Mrs Blackburn wants to get out is to “think twice”. This means symptom-free people taking lateral flow tests twice weekly and that everyone takes up the offer to get the two vaccine doses.

As of 13 June, Wiltshire Council has handed out 3,657 boxes of lateral flow test kits from our seven community collection sites.

“We know lots of people have made summer plans and we’re asking that everyone continues to be cautious and adheres to the rules still in place,” she said.

“So that those plans don’t have to get thrown out of the window due to Covid-19.”

Over the next few weeks, Mrs Blackburn said there will be a ramping up of the key messages and guidance to remind people to play their part in slowing the spread of the virus.

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