COUNCIL leaders in North Yorkshire are warning residents about an upturn in Covid-19 cases in the county.

North Yorkshire County Council chief executive Richard Flinton said: “Despite the terrific efforts of many of you, in North Yorkshire we are now in a more serious position than last week. Infections of Covid-19 continue to rise across the county. We are by no means in the perilous position of some of our close neighbours, but, unfortunately, without an urgent, sustained and collective effort from everyone – we are heading that way.”

The England seven-day average rate of infection per 100,000 people is 93.2. North Yorkshire’s is now 91.1. However, in areas such as Craven and particularly around the Skipton and south Craven border, the situation is above that at 136.5.

He added: “We suspect that the continued and worrying rise in cases in this area will result in the district going onto the Government’s watch list as an area of concern.”

“Scarborough and Selby, which were the first parts of the county to go onto the watch list, are no longer seeing the highest level of spread. It is reasonable to assume that this is due to effective support and interventions by our public health team and wider local resilience forum partners, as well as a really positive and sustained response from residents and businesses there.

“To everyone right across North Yorkshire, I am asking you to redouble your effort. The next few days will be critical; we stand at a tipping point and only by playing our part as individuals in a concerted effort will we be able to step back from this precipice.”

Across the county, our public health colleagues are dealing with 125 outbreaks and incidents across a whole range of settings. Where they fall within settings we have direct access to, the outbreak management plans are working very effectively in containing the virus. These include schools, care homes and workplaces. Where containment is far more complex, unfortunately, is also where the most frequent spread is taking place. This is within households and social interactions. We are also seeing infection carried into the county from surrounding areas where the rates are higher.

“Understandably, many people have been keen to keep track of positive tests in their communities and we have responded to that need for information by publishing daily statistics on a ‘heat map’ on our social media platforms and by setting up this web page.

To understand the position near you, see https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/coronavirus-data.