The good news is that infection rates have been falling rapidly across Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin. A surge in infections followed the arrival of the highly transmissible Omicron variant in December. A second lower surge occurred in early January after the schools returned. In the week to 5 February, an estimated 99.7% of Covid-19 cases in Shropshire were one of the three Omicron variants.
Infection rates in Shropshire have been plummeting since the end of January and are getting closer to the England average. In England, the current rate of infections over the last seven days is 425 per 100,000 people. In Shropshire, the rate is 460 and in Telford & Wrekin 550.
The latest data for Ludlow town shows an infection rate of around 795 in the week to 6 February, well down from the infection rate of 1,200 a week earlier.
In less cheerful news, 44 people with Covid-19 have died in the Royal Shrewsbury and Princes Royal Hospitals this year, bring the total for the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust to 705 deaths during the pandemic.
