Covid-19 in the UK: How many coronavirus cases are there in your area?
By The Visual and Data Journalism Team
BBC News
- Published
There have been more than 4.1 million confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK and nearly 122,000 people have died, government figures show.
However, these figures include only people who have died within 28 days of testing positive for coronavirus.
More than 18 million people in the UK have now had their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine.
Find out how the pandemic has affected your area and how it compares with the national average:
Cases declining
The number of daily infections in the UK continues to decline, with strict lockdown measures still in place across the country
A further 9,938 confirmed cases across the UK were announced by the government on Wednesday.
It is thought the infection rate was much higher than was evident from the reported number of cases during the first peak in spring last year. Testing capacity was too limited to detect the true number of daily cases.
The darker orange areas on the map below show the places currently seeing the highest number of cases per 100,000 people.
During the current lockdown people have been told to stay at home, other than for limited purposes such as essential food shopping, medical appointments and work.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a "roadmap" for easing restrictions in England on Monday, starting with the reopening of schools on 8 March.
In Wales, stay-at-home rules will remain in place until March but some young children have started returning to school.
Younger children have also begun returning to school in Scotland, with the government there hoping to lift the stay-at-home restriction on 5 April.
In Northern Ireland, children will begin a phased return to school in March but other restrictions will continue until April.
Vaccine rollout continues
More than 18 million people have now received a first dose of a vaccine, and nearly 700,000 people have had a second.
The current seven-day average for first doses is about 329,000 doses a day - down from more than 400,000 a day earlier this month.
This drop in first doses can be partially explained by an increase in the number of second doses now being administered.
But Health Secretary Matt Hancock has also blamed the fall on supply issues and said the rollout will see "some really bumper weeks in March".
In total, 15.4 million people in England have had one vaccine dose.
In Scotland, nearly 1.5 million people have had their first dose, while the figure is about 879,000 in Wales and 478,000 in Northern Ireland.
The vaccine rollout is being expanded to include the over-65s and those deemed clinically vulnerable.
Everyone in the top priority groups should be offered a vaccine by 15 April, according to the prime minister.
All adults in the UK are expected to be offered their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine by the end of July.
Daily deaths also falling
The government announced a further 442 deaths within 28 days of a positive test on Wednesday.
On Wednesday last week there were 738 deaths reported.
Of the latest deaths, 380 were in England, 47 in Scotland, 13 in Wales and two in Northern Ireland.
Rules were amended last summer to include deaths in the coronavirus total only if they occurred within 28 days of a positive test. Previously in England, all deaths after a positive test were included.
England has seen the majority of UK deaths from Covid-19. Using the 28-day cut-off, there have been more than 107,000.
Hospitals remain under pressure
There are currently fewer than 17,000 people with coronavirus in hospital in the UK.
Numbers in mid-January reached almost double the highest point of the spring peak, but have been falling since then.
London, the South East and the Midlands saw the highest numbers in recent weeks, but patient numbers are falling in all UK nations and regions now.
But everywhere saw more patients in hospital in the latest surge than during the first wave last spring.
Death toll could be higher
When looking at the overall death toll from coronavirus, official figures count deaths in three different ways, each giving a slightly different number.
First, government figures count people who died within 28 days of testing positive for coronavirus - and that total is nearly 122,000.
Second, ONS figures include all deaths where coronavirus was mentioned on the death certificate, even if the person had not been tested for the virus. This figure is more than 135,000 deaths, to 12 February.
The third measure counts all deaths over and above the usual number at the time of year - that figure was almost 120,000 by 12 February.
In total, there were 17,136 deaths registered in the week to 12 February, which is down on last week but still 26% higher than "normal" for the time of year.
Of that figure, 6,113 deaths were related to coronavirus - 22% down on the previous week.
There have now been more deaths involving Covid than "excess" deaths, which means non-Covid deaths must be below usual levels.
This could be because of a milder flu season - resulting from less travel and more social distancing - and because some people who might have died for other reasons had there been no pandemic, died of Covid.
- COVID VACCINE: When can you get it?
- NEW VARIANTS: How worrying are they?
- FACE MASKS: When do I need to wear one?
- TESTING: How do I get a virus test?
- GLOBAL TRACKER: Where are the virus hotspots?
What is the R number?
The "R number" is the average number of people an infected person will pass the disease on to.
If R is below one, then the number of people contracting the disease will fall; if it is above one, the number will grow.
The government's current estimate for the R number across the whole of the UK is 0.6 to 0.9.
The estimates for England, Scotland and Wales are currently all 0.7 to 0.9 and in Northern Ireland it is 0.7 to 0.8.
The government has said in the past that the R number is one of the most important factors in making policy decisions.
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