People in Sunderland asked to keep up their "hard work" in the fight against Covid

Sunderland's Director of Public Health is urging people living in the city to continue following the rules to help further reduce the Covid infection numbers.

Gerry Taylor has thanked residents for their "hard work and sacrifices" so far, but is calling on people to keep doing everything they can to maintain as much safety as possible.

In her weekly video to residents, Gerry Taylor,  Director of Public Health and Integrated Commissioning at Sunderland City Council, said: "Thanks to the hard work and sacrifices of everyone in the city, we’re continuing to see a reduction in the number of people infected with Covid.

"The evidence so far on the vaccination programme is certainly encouraging but it will still be some time until they are offered to the whole adult population and until we know how they will impact the rates of infection and transmission."With regular testing becoming available for more people she encouraged everyone eligible to take up the offer.

She said: "We know that up to one in three people with Covid do not have symptoms and could be spreading the virus without knowing it. So regular testing for people without symptoms is a really important tool to help us stop the spread of the virus as more sections of society are opened up."This type of testing is already in place for many people through workplaces, the NHS and schools, and as part of the roadmap, regular twice weekly testing will become available for more people starting with all of those in the schools community. 

“If you get a negative result, it is likely you were not infectious at the time the test was taken however, this is not a guarantee that you do not have coronavirus. Therefore you must continue to follow national rules and guidelines including hands, face and space."