SOLIHULL Council has raised the alarm at a spike in Covid-19 cases across the borough.
Since the Bank Holiday weekend, Solihull’s rates have increased from a seven day rate of 7.8 per 100,000 to 35.4 for the seven days to Friday, September 4.
The surge comes as the UK reported two days of coronavirus infections of 2,988 on Sunday and 2,948 on Monday.
Solihull’s Director of Public Health, Ruth Tennant said: “This recent spike is a wake-up call to us all that this virus has not gone away.
“It has been a long year and I know how important it is for people to meet up with friends and family and get back to something that feels a bit more normal.
“But as this sharp increase has shown, Covid-19 is very much still with us.
“Without rapid action, it will continue to spread and our numbers will rise. I’ve spoken to people who have been shielding for many months and who are anxious about leaving their house and older people who are worried about being exposed to the virus.
“We also want our children to be in school and getting back into a normal routine.
“They all need us to do what we can to contain this virus.”
Nationally the health secretary Matt Hancock has blamed the spike in Covid-19 infections on ‘affluent under 25-year-olds’ and is urging
Ruth Tennant added: “Many residents have told me they want to do the right thing but they’re confused about what the guidance means.
“I use a simple rule of thumb which is to act as if the person next to you has something you don’t want to catch.
“The more people you mix with in different places, the more you increase your risk of catching and spreading Covid-19.
“If we apply this rule all the time, we’ll reduce the risk that we need to take tougher and more restrictive measures across the borough.”
