The coronavirus infection rate in north Essex in last week

The figures, for the seven days to July 24, are based on tests carried out in laboratories (pillar one of the Government’s testing programme) and in the wider community (pillar two).

The rate is expressed as the number of new cases per 100,000 people.

Data for the most recent three days (July 25-27) has been excluded as it is incomplete and likely to be revised.

During the period Colchester reported 14 new positive cases.

This was an infection rate of 7.3 cases per 100,000 people - equivalent to the national rate.

For the previous seven days to July 17 the rate had been 2.1 cases per 100,000 people.

READ MORE >>> Location of every coronavirus death in Colchester and Tendring

In Tendring there were 16 new cases reported during the week.

This gave the district a infection rate of 11 cases per 100,000 people up from 6.9 the week before.

It means Tendring has the 89th highest infection rate of all 315 authorities in the UK.

To date 724 people have tested positive for coronavirus in Colchester and 645 in Tendring.

Last week health bosses revealed signs of a spike in Covid-19 cases in Clacton and Harwich.

But they said a local lockdown isn't planned for the two coastal towns in north Essex as it stands.

In Leicester, which has been put into lockdown, there have been a total of 4,636 cases recorded.

When infection rates began to rise in Leicester a local lockdown was put in place.

READ MORE >>> Why a local lockdown is not yet planned for coastal towns with case spike

It comes as no deaths related to the coronavirus have been recorded at trusts running hospitals in north Essex for 13 consecutive days.

East Suffolk and North Essex Foundation Trust, which runs both Colchester and Ipswich hospitals, has not recorded the death of a patient diagnosed with Covid-19 since July 14.

A total of 353 people with the virus have died at the trust’s hospitals.