Two North East areas make the top five Covid hotspots across the UK in new ONS data

Two North East areas feature in the top five in a new list of the areas of the UK with the most Covid infections.

The most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) found that Gateshead was the area with the second-highest number of cases in the country in the week up to 1 October. Meanwhile, Northumberland came in fifth place on the list with 413 cases in the county.

According to the ONS, an estimated 1.3 million people in the UK were infected with the virus in the week leading up to 24 September. The new figures reveal that infections are on the rise across England, with the elderly encouraged to get their autumn booster, The Mirror reports .

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The data shows that Plymouth is the most infected area of the UK, while Gateshead in second place is followed by North Somerset and the Isle of Wight. After Northumberland the areas with the highest cases are Dorset, York, East Riding of Yorkshire, Hampshire and then Devon.

Here is the full list of the 20 most infected areas in the country in the week up to 1 October. The first figure is the number of cases in the local authority area, while the second refers to the infection rate per 100,000 people:

1. Plymouth: 376/(143)

2. Gateshead: 286/(141)

3. North Somerset: 282/(130)

4. Isle of Wight: 182/(127)

5. Northumberland: 413/(127)

6. Dorset: 477/(125)

7. York: 262/(124)

8. East Riding of Yorkshire: 426/(124)

9. Hampshire: 1,701/(122)

10. Devon: 989/ (122)

11. Nottinghamshire: 1,009/(121)

12. Stoke-on-Trent: 308/(120)

13. Torbay: 162/(118)

14. Doncaster: 372/(118)

15. East Sussex: 660/(118)

16. Cheshire East: 453/(117)

17. Derbyshire: 943/(116)

18. Southampton: 292/(115)

19. Lincolnshire: 881/(115)

20. Staffordshire: 1,009/(114)

Sarah Crofts, ONS deputy director of the Covid-19 infection survey, said: “Infections have continued to increase in England, reaching levels last seen in mid-August. Amongst the over-70s there has been a marked increase in infections in England this week, a trend which we will closely monitor as the winter months progress.”

All people in the UK aged 65 and over are currently eligible for a vaccine booster this autumn, provided they had their last jab at least three months ago. Doses are also available to those who are frontline health and care workers, are pregnant, or have weakened immune systems.

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