Covid-19 in the UK: How many coronavirus cases are there in my area?

There have been more than 7.3 million confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK and 134,000 people have died, government figures show.

However, these figures include only people who have died within 28 days of testing positive for coronavirus.

So far, 89% of people aged 16 and over in the UK have had their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine and 81% have had their second.

Find out how the pandemic has affected your area and how it compares with the national average:

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Daily cases remain high

After falling at the end of July, the average number of daily confirmed cases climbed again in August and early September but have started to ease off again.

A further 26,911 confirmed cases were announced on Thursday for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Figures for new cases in Scotland were not available because of a technical issue.

The recent rise in cases has been driven by the Delta variant, which spreads faster than the previously most common Kent variant (now named Alpha).

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the virus "still remains a risk" but that he was "confident we can protect the gains we've made together".

It is thought the infection rate in the first peak of the virus in spring last year was much higher than was evident from the reported number of cases. Testing capacity was then too limited to detect the true number of daily cases.

The red areas on the map below show the places currently seeing the highest number of cases per 100,000 people.

You can use our postcode look-up to check what the rules are where you live.

Vaccine rollout continuing

More than 48.5 million people, or about 89% of people aged 16 and over in the UK, have now received a first dose of a vaccine.

Some 44 million people, about 81% of people aged 16 and over, have had a second.

The first booster vaccines have been given to NHS staff in England and Wales as part of plans to extend protection this winter. Jabs will be offered to the over 50s, health and care workers and younger adults with certain health conditions. The third dose will be given at least six months after those eligible had their second dose.

Public Health England estimates that the UK vaccination programme has prevented more than 105,000 deaths and about 24 million infections, as well as more than 230,800 hospitalisations in those aged 45 years and over.

More than 40.6 million people in England have had one vaccine dose.

In Scotland, at least 4.1 million people have had their first shot, while the figure is approaching 2.4 million in Wales and it is now 1.3 million in Northern Ireland.

All those aged 16 and over can now get a Covid vaccine, as well as children with underlying health conditions who are aged 12 and above.

From late September, healthy children aged 12 to 15 will be offered one dose of a vaccine as well.

All four nations of the UK will also begin offering booster jabs next week to over-50s, younger adults with health conditions and frontline health and social care workers.

Daily deaths have been rising

There were 158 deaths within 28 days of a positive test reported on Thursday.

Of those deaths, 123 were in England, 26 were in Scotland, five were in Northern Ireland and four were in Wales.

England has seen the majority of UK deaths since the pandemic began, with more than 118,000 in total.

Prof Chris Whitty, the UK government's chief medical adviser, has urged those not yet vaccinated to get the jab as soon as possible, saying: "Winter is coming and people really should take this seriously."

He said recent Public Health England data showed that in every age bracket there is a "very substantially smaller" risk of being admitted to hospital and dying with Covid for people who have been vaccinated.

Hospital numbers rising again

The most recent government figures show 8,339 people with coronavirus in hospital in the UK, more than 200 higher than last week.

More than 1,000 of those in hospital with coronavirus are in mechanical ventilation beds - using ventilators to help them breathe.

Although numbers of hospital patients with coronavirus have climbed in recent weeks, they are far below the peak of nearly 40,000 people back in January.

Patient numbers are rising in many regions, as the chart below shows.

Patient groups and hospital staff have warned that lives are being put at risk by the huge backlog of treatment left by the pandemic.

Figures released last month show that a record number of people - more than 5.45 million - are waiting for NHS hospital treatment in England.

Death toll could be nearly 160,000

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 now approaching 135,000.

According to the latest ONS figures, the UK has now seen more than 157,000 deaths - that's all those deaths where coronavirus was mentioned on the death certificate even if the person had not been tested for the virus.

The third measure counts all deaths over and above the usual number at the time of year - that figure was more than 124,000 to 3 September.

In total, there were 10,307 deaths registered in the week to 3 September, which was 9% above the five-year average.

Of the total deaths, 781 were related to coronavirus, 12 more than 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.

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 has said in the past that the R number is one of the most important factors in making policy decisions.

The latest R number estimate for England is 0.9 to 1.1, while for Scotland it is 1.2 to 1.5, for Wales it is 1.2 to 1.4 and for Northern Ireland it is 0.95 to 1.10.