Follow the latest coronavirus lockdown updates from Lincoln and Lincolnshire.
3,626 coronavirus cases in Greater Lincolnshire (up from 3,611)
2,640 in Lincolnshire (up from 2,632)
752 in North Lincolnshire (up from 748)
234 in North East Lincolnshire (up from 231)
439 COVID-19 deaths in Greater Lincolnshire healthcare (no change)
143 at United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust (no change)
4 at Lincolnshire Community Health Service hospitals (no change)
1 at Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust (no change)
118 in Northern Lincolnshire (NLAG) (no change)
114 in Lincolnshire care homes (no change)
52 in North Lincolnshire care homes (no change)
7 in North East Lincolnshire care homes (no change)
466 COVID-19 deaths from Greater Lincolnshire postcodes (no change)
323 from Lincolnshire (no change)
107 from North Lincolnshire (no change)
36 from North East Lincolnshire (no change)
Please note: Since the urgent review into how COVID-19 deaths are counted local figures have been removed from the government dashboard.
325,642 cases, 41,429 deaths in total
DATA SOURCE — FIGURES CORRECT AT THE TIME OF the latest update. postcode data includes deaths not in healthcare facilities or in hospitals outside authority boundaries.
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17th August 2020 2:50pm
17 new COVID-19 cases in Lincolnshire over the weekend
This weekend saw another 17 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Greater Lincolnshire.
The latest government figures, published Sunday, show 13 new COVID-19 positive cases in Lincolnshire and four in North East Lincolnshire.
There have been no additional cases confirmed in North Lincolnshire since Friday.
The current breakdown of the region’s 3,572 cumulative cases is:
2,603 in Lincolnshire (up from 2,590)
742 in North Lincolnshire (no change)
227 in North East Lincolnshire (up from 223)
Hospital data also confirmed no further deaths in their latest figures, bringing the latest tally to 18 days.
Nationally, government data shows increases to 318,484 cases and 41,366 deaths.
However, since an urgent review of how deaths were recorded last week cut more than 5,000 from the data, local figures have been removed from the government dashboard.
It means the changes have not been reflected in local figures.
The government’s dashboard continues to say the deaths page is “being re–developed”.
There have been 99 cases in the region so far in August.
17th August 2020 5:04pm
11 new COVID-19 cases in Lincolnshire on Monday
There have been 11 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Greater Lincolnshire on Monday.
The latest government figures show nine new COVID-19 positive cases in Lincolnshire and two in North East Lincolnshire.
There have been no additional cases confirmed in North Lincolnshire since Friday.
The current breakdown of the region’s 3,583 cumulative cases is:
2,612 in Lincolnshire (up from 2,603)
742 in North Lincolnshire (no change)
229 in North East Lincolnshire (up from 227)
Hospital data also confirmed no further deaths in their latest figures, meaning 18 days without fatalities.
Nationally, government data shows cases increased by 713 to 319,197 cases and deaths rose by three to 41,369.
Since an urgent review of how deaths were recorded last week cut more than 5,000 from the data, local figures had been removed from the government dashboard.
It meant the changes have not been reflected in local figures.
National death figures had returned to the dashboard Monday at the time of publication, however, regional figures still had not appeared.
There have been 110 cases in the region so far in August.
18th August 2020 10:38am
Four new Lincolnshire COVID-19 cases from Newark factory outbreak
Four new coronavirus cases in Lincolnshire have been linked to an outbreak at a factory in Newark, health bosses have confirmed.
Bakkavor’s Dessert Factory has now voluntarily tested 700 of its 1,600+ staff, and confirmed a total of 72 cases.
Of those, 23 are employees who live in Lincolnshire and commute to work, plus three of their family members.
The majority of the workers have only mild symptoms or did not show any symptoms of the virus when they were tested.
With up to 800 more tests due to be carried out at the site, numbers are expected to rise.
Tony McGinty, assistant director of public health at the county council, said: “In Lincolnshire there’s a concentration of people living in City of Lincoln Council area and then there’s a smattering of people just about all over other places in the county.”
He said health bosses in the county were keeping a close eye to make sure there was no “outward spread” from those affected.
However, Mr McGinty said Lincolnshire’s case numbers – although rising slightly higher than before, but in line with national figures – were not worrying.
A total of 7,680 tests have been carried out in Lincolnshire in the past seven days, of which 30 people were found to be positive.
“That’s giving us a positivity rate which is roughly similar to most of the rest of the country, so it’s still relatively low and we’re nowhere near numbers that will give us cause for concern anywhere, but we are still seeing cases every day in Lincolnshire.”
18th August 2020 11:21am
Revised Lincolnshire COVID-19 death figures elude health bosses
Accurate figures for COVID-19 deaths in Lincolnshire continue to elude local health bosses, who say they still don’t know the impact of changes to how they were recorded.
A recent national review saw more than 5,000 deaths across the UK taken off the record as “coronavirus-related”.
Now deaths will only be recorded on the government’s dashboard if they take place within 28 days of a positive test.
However, the revised deaths data does not yet show the numbers at a local level, or if any changes have occurred at all.
Lincolnshire County Council’s assistant director of public health Tony McGinty said: “I asked Public Health England (PHE), when they will be releasing data to a Lincolnshire or sub-Lincolnshire level again and the short answer was they weren’t sure when that was going to be available — so we still do not have the updated numbers.”
Prior to their disappearance from the dashboard, the government’s death tally for Greater Lincolnshire postcodes was 466, broken down as:
Eight new COVID-19 cases in Lincolnshire on Tuesday
There have been eight confirmed cases of coronavirus in Greater Lincolnshire on Tuesday.
The latest government figures show five new COVID-19 positive cases in Lincolnshire, one in North East Lincolnshire and two in North Lincolnshire.
Hospital data also confirmed no further deaths in their latest figures, meaning 19 days without fatalities.
The current breakdown of the region’s 3,591 cumulative cases is:
2,617 in Lincolnshire (up from 2,612)
744 in North Lincolnshire (up from 742)
230 in North East Lincolnshire (up from 229)
There have been 118 cases in the region so far in August.
Nationally, government data showed cases increased Tuesday by 1,089 to 320,286 and deaths rose by 12 to 41,381.
Since an urgent review of how deaths were recorded last week cut more than 5,000 from the data, local figures have been removed from the government dashboard.
It means the changes have not been reflected in local figures.
National death figures had returned to the dashboard at the time of publication, however, regional figures still had not appeared.
19th August 2020 4:22pm
Six new COVID-19 cases in Lincolnshire on Wednesday
There have been six new cases of coronavirus in Greater Lincolnshire on Wednesday.
The latest government figures show four new COVID-19 positive cases in Lincolnshire, and one each in both North East Lincolnshire and North Lincolnshire.
Hospital data also confirmed no further deaths in their latest figures, meaning 20 days without fatalities.
The current breakdown of the region’s 3,597 cumulative cases is:
2,621 in Lincolnshire (up from 2,617)
745 in North Lincolnshire (up from 744)
231 in North East Lincolnshire (up from 230)
There have been 124 cases in the region so far in August.
Nationally, government data showed cases increased Wednesday by 812 to 321,098 and deaths rose by 16 to 41,397.
Since an urgent review of how deaths were recorded last week cut more than 5,000 from the data, local figures have been removed from the government dashboard.
It means the changes have not been reflected in local figures.
National death figures had returned to the dashboard at the time of publication, however, regional figures still had not appeared.
21st August 2020 8:06am
Three weeks without COVID-19 hospital deaths in Lincolnshire
Greater Lincolnshire’s hospitals have gone three weeks without any new coronavirus-related deaths.
NHS data on Thursday showed no further deaths in any of the trusts covering Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire or North East Lincolnshire for 21 days.
However, in the same period, government figures have confirmed 12 deaths of people living in Greater Lincolnshire postcodes, rising from 454 to 466.
This would include care homes, community deaths, or hospitals outside Lincolnshire.
However, an urgent review of how deaths were recorded last week cut more than 5,000 from the national database.
Since then local figures have been removed from the government dashboard which means the changes, or any further increases, have not been reflected in local figures.
There have been six new cases of coronavirus in Greater Lincolnshire on Thursday.
The latest government figures show five new COVID-19 positive cases in Lincolnshire, and one in North Lincolnshire.
North East Lincolnshire did not have any new cases.
The current breakdown of the region’s 3,603 cumulative cases is:
2,626 in Lincolnshire (up from 2,621)
746 in North Lincolnshire (up from 745)
231 in North East Lincolnshire (no change)
There have been 130 cases in the region so far in August.
Nationally, government data showed cases increased Wednesday by 1,182 to 322,280 and deaths rose by six to 41,403.
21st August 2020 10:27am
Lincoln on COVID-19 “red list” due to Newark outbreak
Lincoln has been on a COVID-19 “red list” for a week due to an outbreak of the virus at a factory in Newark which spilled over the border in Lincolnshire, but health bosses are not concerned yet.
So far 24 employees and three family members who live in Lincolnshire tested positive for coronavirus from the outbreak at the Bakkavor Deserts factory..
The sudden increase in cases means Lincoln has been on the “red list” for a week — the longest an authority in Lincolnshire has been.
South Kesteven also appeared in the danger zone for a few days for the same reason but has since dropped off.
Council bosses are adamant, however, that there are no other major concerns in the county apart from the factory outbreak.
“Don’t panic” over holiday quarantines, says Lincolnshire health boss
County health bosses are urging people not to panic over foreign travel restrictions which could mean they have to quarantine on their return from abroad.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced that Croatia, Austria and Trinidad and Tobago were being added to the list of countries travellers will need to self-isolate for 14 days after visiting.
However, Portugal will be taken off.
Tony McGinty, assistant director for public health at Lincolnshire County Council said travellers should take the time to consider factors including how safe they feel in the area they are staying and their ability to work from home before rushing back home.
“We’re just encouraging people really to think about consumer protections if they are booking foreign holidays and to make sure that wherever they can they’re booking holidays in ways which gives them protection if they do suddenly have to repatriate quickly.
He also urged employers to support their employees in line with government desires but also to have clear policies around holiday travel.
Lincolnshire COVID-19 cases up 38% in August already
The month of August so far has seen 38% more COVID-19 cases than the whole of July in Lincolnshire.
According to government figures there have been 39 new cases this week, taking the total to 138 for the month so far.
At the end of July there had been 100 cases confirmed for the month, the lowest month since the pandemic began.
Local health bosses said we are so far in line with the national average and that there is no cause for concern, despite Lincoln being on a “red list” for a week due to an outbreak at a factory in neighbouring Newark.
Friday’s data showed six cases in Lincolnshire and two in North Lincolnshire. There were no newcases in North East Lincolnshire.
NHS data for Friday showed no new deaths in any of the hospital trusts covering Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire or North East Lincolnshire for 22 days.
Friday’s figures also recorded no further deaths of Greater Lincolnshire residents in other places such as care homes, community, or hospitals outside Lincolnshire.
However, an urgent review of how deaths were recorded last week cut more than 5,000 from the national database.
Since then local figures have been removed from the government dashboard which means the changes, or any further increases, have not been reflected in local figures.
Nationally, government data showed cases increased Friday by 1,033 to 323,313 and deaths rose by two to 41,405.
There have been 263 new coronavirus cases in Greater Lincolnshire on Thursday and three COVID-related deaths, compared to 195 cases and two deaths this time last week,
The government’s COVID-19 dashboard recorded 204 new cases in Lincolnshire, 36 in North East Lincolnshire and 23 in North Lincolnshire.
On Thursday, two deaths was registered in Lincolnshire and one in North Lincolnshire. These figures include deaths both in and out of hospitals, as well as residents in hospitals outside the county. North Lincolnshire deaths have now hit 300.
NHS England reported four new local hospital deaths, including two at United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust and two at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust.
On Thursday, national cases increased by 9,985 to 4,154,562 while deaths rose by 323 to 122,070. Some 18.6 million have had their first jab.
In local news, the latest NHS England figures show that nearly 240,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Lincolnshire so far.
The weekly data released on Thursday shows 237,027 jabs have taken place between December 8 and February 21 — up by 34,228 on the previous week. However, that figure is lower week on week (36,828 last week and 38,365 the week before).
The UK’s COVID-19 alert level has been downgraded as the threat of the NHS being overwhelmed recedes.
The UK’s chief medical officers said the alert level should move from 5 to 4 as the numbers of patients in hospital are “consistently declining and the threat of the NHS and other health services being overwhelmed within 21 days has receded”.
Level 4 means transmission of COVID-19 is now “high or rising exponentially” compared with level 5, the highest level, where there was “a risk of healthcare services being overwhelmed”.
Police have handed out nearly 70,000 fines to people for breaching COVID-19 lockdown rules since they came into force, with more than 6,000 issued in a single week, new data shows.
Figures published by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) on Thursday show that a total of 68,952 Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) were issued by forces.
GCSEs and A-levels cancelled in England by the pandemic will be replaced by grades decided by teachers, the exams watchdog Ofqual has confirmed.
Schools can determine grades this summer by using a combination of mock exams, coursework and essays.
More surge testing will be rolled out in Ealing after additional cases of the coronavirus variant first identified in South Africa were detected.
It is an extension of testing which was started in the west London borough earlier this month following the discovery of previous cases.
Here’s Greater Lincolnshire’s infection rate numbers up to February 25 according to the government dashboard:
Greater Lincolnshire’s infection rates from Feb 17 to Feb 24. | Data: Gov UK / Table: James Mayer for The Lincolnite
Coronavirus data for Greater Lincolnshire on Thursday, February 25
Greater Lincolnshire includes Lincolnshire and the unitary authorities of North and North East (Northern) Lincolnshire.
53,054 cases (up 263)
37,468 in Lincolnshire (up 204)
7,969 in North Lincolnshire (up 23)
7,617 in North East Lincolnshire (up 36)
2,060 deaths (up three)
1,513 from Lincolnshire (up two)
300 from North Lincolnshire (up one)
247 from North East Lincolnshire (no change)
of which 1,213 hospital deaths (up four)
752 at United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust (up two)
41 at Lincolnshire Community Health Service hospitals (no change)
1 at Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust (no change)
419 in Northern Lincolnshire (NLAG) (up two)
4,154,562 UK cases, 122,070 deaths
DATA SOURCE — FIGURES CORRECT AT THE TIME OF the latest update. postcode data includes deaths not in healthcare facilities or in hospitals outside authority boundaries.
A prolific and aggressive beggar who caused issues in Lincoln and North Hykeham has been issued with a criminal behaviour order by Lincolnshire Police.
The man caused issues particularly around The Forum in North Hykeham and the Tritton Road retail parks in Lincoln — but police would not name him.
He failed to engage with support offered to him and became very aggressive with his begging. This included approaching cars that were pulling into car parks and opening their doors to ask for change.
He was also abusive to shop staff who asked him to stop harassing their customers.
The man already had an existing CBO from the Nottinghamshire area for similar behaviour, but that only applied to areas within that county.
On one occasion, he also told Lincolnshire officers he did not care about criminal behaviour orders. A CBO was issued to the man after work between Lincolnshire Police and the city council’s intervention team.
Lincoln Police said: “We are sure he will when our city centre team start arresting him for breaches and he finds himself facing a custodial sentence.
“This is slow painstaking work building up a real picture of the individual’s behaviour for the court but it will ultimately reduce the negative impact he has had on the community.
This comes after police said in September last year that there had been an increase in the number of people begging at The Forum in North Hykeham.
Lincolnshire health bosses said there have been no hospital admissions with flu cases during this season, which can be put down to the national lockdown, social distancing and face coverings being widely worn.
However, this doesn’t mean the virus has completely disappeared, it is just not spreading as fast.
This comes as Public Health England has not recorded a single case of flu so far this year through routine surveillance tests, despite it being the height of the usual flu season.
Andy Fox, Assistant Director of Public Health at Lincolnshire County Council said: “We’ve seen no hospital admissions due to a confirmed case of influenza and a very low rate of GP consultations, close to zero, for influenza.
“This is good news and demonstrates how effective lockdown measures, as well as social distancing and wearing of face coverings, can be in preventing transmission of respiratory viruses.”
He added: “It’s a reminder that, although influenza is expected to be circulating, the hands, face, space guidance can prevent outbreaks and infections – whether it’s COVID-19 or other viruses, such as influenza.”