384 further coronavirus cases and two more deaths recorded in Mid Sussex

The number of coronavirus cases in Mid Sussex increased by 384 over the weekend which followed the end of free testing in England, official figures show – and two more deaths were recorded.

The withdrawal of free tests for most people in the country on April 1 means the figures are not an accurate reflection of the number of people with Covid.

A total of 48,777 cases had been confirmed in Mid Sussex when the UK coronavirus daily dashboard was updated on April 4 (Monday), up from 48,393 on Friday.

The cumulative rate of infection in Mid Sussex, which covers the whole pandemic, stands at 32,060 cases per 100,000 people, higher than the England average of 31,806.

In England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, if one person tests positive for the virus more than 90 days after the first infection, two infection episodes will be recorded, according to the UK Health Security Agency.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases increased by 142,807 over the last 24 hours, to 21,359,681.

England’s change in testing requirements means the reported number of coronavirus cases in the UK is also likely to be an underestimate.

There were also two more coronavirus deaths recorded over the weekend in Mid Sussex.

The dashboard shows 315 people had died in the area by April 4 (Monday) – up from 313 on Friday.

It means there have been four deaths in the past week, which is an increase on one the previous week.

They were among 21,199 deaths recorded across the South East.

The figures include anyone who died within 28 days of a positive test result for Covid-19, and whose usual residence was in Mid Sussex.

Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death.

Figures reported on a Monday are likely to be lower as a result of a lag in reporting deaths over the weekend.

The figures also show that nearly three-quarters of people in Mid Sussex have received a booster dose of a Covid-19 vaccine.

The latest figures show 98,572 people had received a booster or third dose by April 3 (Sunday) – 72% of those aged 12 and over, based on the number of people on the National Immunisation Management Service database.

A total of 117,281 people (86%) had received two jabs by that date.

Across England, 67% of people aged 12 and above had received a booster.

Unlike at local level, the national rate was calculated using mid-2020 population estimates from the Office for National Statistics.