Suffolk: Get on top of Covid before winter says chief nurse

Suffolk's chief nursing officer said the county needed "get on top of" rising Covid-19 rates ahead of winter.

In the week to 15 October, Ipswich had a rate of 861.2 cases per 100,000 people, the third-highest in England.

All districts in the county had a rise in case rates, including West Suffolk where the rate rose 39% week-on-week.

Lisa Nobes, chief nurse for Suffolk and North East Essex, said there was "a high number of Covid-positive children" in Suffolk.

She added that there was "a huge amount of work that schools and public health are doing" to reduce rates among pupils.

Ipswich's figure was slightly up on the previous case rate of 854.5 in the week to 14 October, when it was the district with the highest rate in England.

Suffolk County Council has advised education settings to bring back masks for staff in communal areas from 1 November.

The authority said youngsters in secondary schools and higher education should wear face coverings in communal areas outside of the classroom.

It also said parents would be advised to wear face masks while collected children, and schools should only have "essential visitors".

Ms Nobes urged people eligible for a booster jab to get one either when asked, or at a walk-in centre.

But she also said those who had not received any jab should "come forward for their vaccines, particularly if they are parents who are pregnant and also with children at school".

"We do need to get on top of this; winter is coming soon and we need to make sure our rates are reduced," she added.

She said that in winter "people tend to be indoors without the ventilation and there is risk there" of both Covid-19 and flu.

The NHS Confederation has said a back-up strategy, or Plan B, which includes mandatory face coverings in crowded and enclosed spaces, should be implemented now to avoid hospitals becoming overwhelmed.

But Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said it was not time for Plan B yet and urged greater uptake of booster jabs.

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