A HEATH chief says Brighton is “a long way from local lockdown” after the number of confirmed cases in the city fell for the third week in a row.

However, the city will remain under a yellow alert for Covid-19 amid concerns recent data “is not showing the full picture”.

Brighton and Hove City Council said a yellow alert indicated that “confirmed cases have increased” and “to slow the virus we all need to step up physical distancing, wear face coverings where advised, limit contact between households and follow the rule of six”.

The Argus:

The alert is part of a traffic-light system introduced by the authority at the start of the month.

A red alert is the most severe, followed by amber, yellow and finally green.

There were 31 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the city in the seven days leading up to September 26, a drop from 47 the previous week and 59 cases the week before that.

This means that Brighton and Hove’s current weekly rate of new cases is 10.7 per 100,000 residents, far lower than England’s rate of 57.6 per 100,000.

But, despite the recent decrease in weekly cases, the city is still under the yellow alert due to the possibility a lack of access to testing could have skewed the latest figures.

Brighton and Hove City Council said the figures available could be skewed due to residents’ recent difficulties in booking tests, with some people told to travel as far afield as Wales and the Isle of Wight to visit a testing centre.

The Argus:

It is hoped a new walk-through testing site in East Brighton Park will help give more people access to testing.

Alistair Hill, the city’s director of public health, said: “Brighton and Hove is still a long way from a local lockdown as seen in other parts of the country. But we must all keep playing our part to stop the virus from spreading.

“It’s good to see that this week the number of cases among young people is coming down. But we know a lot of transmission is occurring within households, between family members or flatmates.

The Argus:

“We’re asking everyone who has Covid symptoms to seek a test and self-isolate for 10 days from the first day the symptoms start.

“If one person in a household has symptoms or tests positive for Covid-19, the whole household must self-isolate for 14 days – even if they don’t have symptoms.

“If you have symptoms (or have had a positive result), try and stay as far away from other members of your household as possible. It is especially important to stay away from anyone you share a household with who is clinically vulnerable or clinically extremely vulnerable.

The Argus:

“People also need to self-isolate for 14 days if one of their support bubble has symptoms or tests positive, or they are asked to by NHS Test and Trace.

“We know this will be difficult for many people as they cannot leave home for any reason, even to buy food or collect a prescription.

“It can also be a lonely and anxious time. We are making help available for anyone who is having difficulty while self-isolation through our Community Hub.

“The resources available range from emergency help accessing food to financial and well being advice.”