AS THE number of Covid cases continue to rise across England, we have put together five updates to keep you informed about coronavirus.

Although the vaccination drive is on top gear, the Delta variant of coronavirus is still spreading across the country.

It is important to keep up to date of the latest developments regarding the pandemic.

Here are the five majore updates from last week that Basingstoke residents should read.  

110 further coronavirus cases in Basingstoke and Deane

The number of coronavirus cases in Basingstoke and Deane increased by 110 in a day, official figures show.

A total of 11,004 people had been confirmed as testing positive for Covid-19 in Basingstoke and Deane when the UK coronavirus daily dashboard was updated on July 23 (Friday), up from 10,894 on Thursday.

The rate of infection in Basingstoke and Deane now stands at 6,232 cases per 100,000 people, far lower than the England average of 8,739.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases increased by 35,654 over the period, to 5,637,975.

Tragic Covid-19 death toll across Hampshire care homes revealed

The tragic coronavirus death toll across Hampshire care homes has been revealed by the nation’s care watchdog in newly published figures.

The Care Quality Commission said it was publishing figures on death notifications it received from named homes for the first time in a bid to be transparent, following earlier requests to share the data.

The organisation said releasing the information earlier in the pandemic could have had a “serious impact on continuity of care” but it is doing so now as risks have changed.

More than 78,500 care home residents died in England between April 10 2020 and March 31 2021, with around 7,000 care homes registering at least one death related to coronavirus.

Deaths have decreased substantially across the country as a whole as the vaccine continues to be rolled out.

In Hampshire, 1,163 care home residents died with Covid-19 during this period.

The highest number of fatalities, 534, were recorded in the three months to March 2021.

Overall, 200 individual care homes in the area reported at least one Covid-19 related death.

Basingstoke waste collection may be disrupted as staff forced to isolate

WASTE collection in Basingstoke could be affected in the coming days after several members of staff have been forced to self-isolate due to Covid-19, Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council (BDBC) has warned.

The council are now urging residents to leave their bins out even if the rubbish has not been collected on the usual day, adding the crews will return “as soon as possible.”.

Speaking to the Gazette, BDBC’s Cabinet Member for Recycling Waste and Regulatory Services Cllr Hayley Eachus said: “We are currently experiencing high numbers of waste collection staff being required to self-isolate.

“As a result, some residents may experience disruption to collection services. We would ask them to continue to leave their bin out in its usual collection place and the crew will return as soon as possible. We are grateful for our residents’ continued patience and support during this challenging time.”

16 sectors where workers will be exempt from Covid-19 self-isolation

The government has released a list of 16 sectors where fully vaccinated workers will be exempt from self-isolation when told to quarantine after coming into close contact of someone who has tested positive for Covid-19.

The new process will allow critical workers to carry on with their jobs even if identified as a contact of a coronavirus case.

It is only intended to run until August 16, when a wider relaxation for fully vaccinated contacts is set to take effect.

Where employers believe the self-isolation of certain key employees as contacts would result in serious disruption to critical services, they have been asked to contact the relevant Government department.

The 16 sectors are:

  • Energy
  • Civil nuclear
  • Digital infrastructure
  • Food production and supply
  • Waste
  • Water
  • Veterinary medicines
  • Essential chemicals
  • Essential transport
  • Medicines
  • Medical devices
  • Clinical consumable supplies
  • Emergency services
  • Border control
  • Essential defence
  • Local government

Do I have to self-isolate if pinged by NHS Covid-19 app?

Downing Street has said it is “crucial” that people self-isolate after receiving an alert from the NHS Covid-19 app.

No. 10 moved to clear confusion after business minister Paul Scully said it was a decision for individuals and employers whether they should isolate after a “ping” from the app.

In the first week of July, more than half a million people were told to self-isolate by the NHS Covid-19 app with that number continuing to rise.