Three Covid-19 clusters in Cambridge - but were testing issues behind fall in coronavirus infection rate in Cambridgeshire?
A fall in the number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Cambridgeshire may in part have been due to testing issues, a public health report has said.
The rate of recorded cases in the county dropped in the week ending September 20, from 11 people per 100,000 the week before to 7.5, which was despite a national increase and an average rate of 42 cases per 100,000 for the whole of England.
The incidence rate in Peterborough also dropped by almost half, from 27.7 per 100,000 people to 15.3.
The figures were included in the weekly Covid-19 update produced by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Public Health Intelligence Team.
The document says: “The weekly incidence per 100,000 population has decreased in all districts in the last reporting week. This is, in part, expected to be due to testing issues experienced locally, as has been the situation nationally.”
Update - October 3: Read our complete guide to the latest figures for every part of Cambridgeshire
The report from the week before showed the total number of cases in the Cambridgeshire County Council area had doubled between the weeks beginning August 17 and September 7, rising steadily to 69 cases.
In Peterborough, during the same period, the total number of cases had risen from 38 to 53 per 100,000.
As reported by the Cambridge Independent, residents have been struggling to get a coronavirus test at the testing site in Milton.
Some have been advised to travel far outside of the region to get a test, including one Cambridgeshire resident who was told to travel to Aberdeen.
The weekly update says: “The seven-day rolling average of confirmed cases for Cambridgeshire, Peterborough, and each of the Cambridgeshire districts, shows a declining trend in Covid-19 cases since the peaks in late April/early May, and a lower, more stable trend in recent weeks.”
The most recent data shows the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Cambridge in the 10 days to September 27 was 20. This compares to five confirmed cases in East Cambridgeshire and 20 in South Cambridgeshire.
There were three clusters in the city which were highlighted as having more than two confirmed cases in the period September 20-26: Arbury (4), King’s Hedges (3) and Cambridge Central and West (3). Longstanton, Swavesey and Oakington also had five confirmed coronavirus cases during the same period. Houghton, Hemingford and Fenstanton also had five cases.
Meanwhile, Linton Village College has recorded a confirmed case.
A Cambridgeshire County Council spokesperson said: “We can confirm we have been notified of a positive test result at Linton Village College. The affected person is isolating, as are those who were identified as having been in close contact with the confirmed person. We are working with the school and it remains open and safe for all other children and staff.”
It has also been confirmed that a member of staff at Buttercups Nursery in Bar Hill tested positive for the virus around two weeks ago.
The staff member immediately isolated and the nursery underwent a deep clean. No other staff member or child was affected, the county council said.
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