THE number of coronavirus cases in Swindon increased by seven in the last 24 hours.

A total of 21,305 people had been confirmed as testing positive for Covid-19 in Swindon when the UK coronavirus daily dashboard was updated on September 23, up from 21,298 on Wednesday.

There have been 689 new positive tests recorded in the borough during the last seven days, which is 243 (54 per cent) more than the week before. Across the UK, cases increased by 35,764

The dashboard shows 285 people had died in the area by September 23 (Thursday) – which was unchanged from Wednesday.

It means there have been three deaths in the past week, which is a decrease on four the previous week.

They were among 7,301 deaths recorded across the south west.

The figures include anyone who died within 28 days of a positive test result for Covid-19, and whose usual residence was in Swindon.

They show that four in five people in Swindon have received two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine.

The latest figures show 154,945 people had received both jabs by September 22 – 79 per cent of those aged 16 and over.

Across England, 82 per cent of people aged 16 and above received a second dose.