Community Testing
New figures show that than 9 in 10 local authorities across England have now signed up to the community testing programme and are providing rapid tests for people who cannot work from home – breaking chains of transmission and helping us slow the spread of this deadly virus.
- Since the community testing programme was launched in December, local authorities have undertaken incredibly innovative work to rapidly get programmes up and running in local areas, using their local expertise.
- 232 local authorities are now rolling out community testing, covering a population of around 42 million people and identifying thousands of positive cases in people not showing symptoms, who could be unknowingly spreading the virus. Over 2.2 million rapid-turnaround tests have been carried out by councils already, which has identified 44,000 cases – breaking thousands of chains of transmission.
- Local authorities have done a heroic job on the frontline during the pandemic, supported by more than £8 billion in extra funding, and we will continue to give them the support they need to deliver for their communities, keep people safe and help defeat this virus.
Comments