HEREFORDSHIRE'S coronavirus infection rate continues to fall as fewer new cases are being found in the county.

The infection rate has fallen for the third week in a row as the coronavirus lockdown enters its fifth week.

The latest figures, for the seven days to January 31, show the infection rate – the number of new cases per 100,00 people – stands at 149.9 new cases per 100,000 people.

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That has dropped from 212.7 the week before.

The fall is as a result of 289 new cases were recorded during the most recent week, less than the 410 the previous week.

The infection rate is now at its lowest level since mid-December, shortly before Herefordshire moved into Tier 1 coronavirus restrictions.

Data for the most recent four days (February 1-4) has been excluded as it is incomplete and does not reflect the true number of cases.

Of the 315 local areas in England, six (two per cent) have seen a rise in case rates, 306 (97 per cent) have seen a fall and three are unchanged.

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Sandwell in the West Midlands has the highest rate in England, with 1,698 new cases recorded in the seven days to January 31 – the equivalent of 517.0 cases per 100,000 people.

This is down from 706.0 cases per 100,000 people in the seven days to January 24.

Knowsley has the second highest rate, down from 778.2 to 487.9, with 736 new cases.

Corby in Northamptonshire is in third place, down from 567.7 to 477.7, with 345 new cases.

The list has been calculated by the PA news agency based on Public Health England data published on February 4 on the Government’s coronavirus dashboard.

Here is the top 20 in the list.

From left to right, it reads: name of local authority; rate of new cases in the seven days to January 31; number (in brackets) of new cases recorded in the seven days to January 31; rate of new cases in the seven days to January 24; number (in brackets) of new cases recorded in the seven days to January 24.

  1. Sandwell, 517.0, (1698), 706.0, (2319)
  2. Knowsley, 487.9, (736), 778.2, (1174)
  3. Corby, 477.7, (345), 567.7, (410)
  4. Slough, 470.8, (704), 674.7, (1009)
  5. Walsall, 465.9, (1330), 595.5, (1700)
  6. St Helens, 460.7, (832), 632.4, (1142)
  7. Luton, 435.1, (927), 583.9, (1244)
  8. Hounslow, 426.9, (1159), 603.6, (1639)
  9. Blackburn with Darwen, 418.8, (627), 543.1, (813)
  10. Peterborough, 412.3, (834), 472.7, (956)
  11. Ealing, 412.2, (1409), 634.3, (2168)
  12. Dudley, 408.6, (1314), 538.6, (1732)
  13. Halton, 404.9, (524), 581.9, (753)
  14. Redditch, 399.9, (341), 518.4, (442)
  15. Brent, 399.7, (1318), 624.1, (2058)
  16. Birmingham, 399.1, (4557), 527.0, (6017)
  17. Wolverhampton, 390.7, (1029), 643.6, (1695)
  18. Bedford, 388.9, (674), 489.3, (848)
  19. Northampton, 388.2, (872), 511.1, (1148)
  20. Hillingdon, 380.0, (1166), 539.6, (1656)

Here's how Herefordshire compares to nearby areas.

54. Worcester, 324.0, (328), 418.9, (424)

191. Shropshire, 216.9, (701), 284.1, (918)

213. Gloucester, 206.0, (266), 324.5, (419)

267. Malvern Hills, 165.2, (130), 245.2, (193)

280. Forest of Dean, 152.1, (132), 152.1, (132)

283. Herefordshire, 149.9, (289), 212.7, (410)

204. Cheltenham, 115.2, (134), 146.2, (170)