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Coronavirus UK: are Covid-19 cases rising or falling near you?

The map shows local authorities where the number of cases has increased week-on-week and where it has fallen. Some of this is due to natural fluctuations, especially in areas where there are very few cases, and so a rise from 1 to 2 is a doubling. Increased testing also means that more cases may be being detected than previously, although the impact of this between one week and the next is likely to be slight.

But even in Kent, a large and populous county with relatively many cases, a rise week-on-week may still be consistent with a downward trajectory overall, if outweighed by falls in the weeks before and after. It does, however, suggest the value of continued vigilance.

The chart below shows the areas that have had the highest daily peaks of new Covid-19 cases. Despite a first peak at the start of April, notably in Birmingham and Sheffield, cases in all areas were falling in May.

Other areas have had less dramatic peaks of infection. Find the cases curve in your own area by typing into the search bar below.

The numbers of cases only include those who have been tested for Covid-19. The actual number of cases is likely to be much higher as many people with symptoms have not been tested. Cases data for England comes from Public Health England and includes only tests carried out by public health bodies. This is known as “pillar 1” testing.

At time of publication, approximately a third of positive tests were carried by commercial testers, so-called “pillar 2” testing. While these commercial test results are included in the UK-wide figure, data about these tests is not available at a regional or local level in England. Public health bodies for other UK nations follow different approaches so comparisons between areas in different parts of the UK may be problematic. Note also that historical data on daily cases is published by National Health Scotland by NHS health board, not by local authority.

Find out how many lives have been lost to Covid-19 in your area

The numbers for deaths are not as up to date as the numbers for cases. That is because it can take several weeks for deaths to be recorded.

  • Due to the unprecedented and ongoing nature of the coronavirus outbreak, this article is being regularly updated to ensure that it reflects the current situation as best as possible. Any significant corrections made to this or previous versions of the article will continue to be footnoted in line with Guardian editorial policy.

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