The number of coronavirus cases in Winchester increased by 258 in the last 24 hours, official figures show.

A total of 34,806 cases had been confirmed in Winchester when the UK coronavirus daily dashboard was updated on March 17 (Thursday), up from 34,548 on Wednesday.

The cumulative rate of infection in Winchester, which covers the whole pandemic, stands at 27,640 cases per 100,000 people, far lower than the England average of 29,815.

In England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, if one person tests positive for the virus more than 90 days after the first infection, two infection episodes will be recorded, according to the UK Health Security Agency.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases increased by 90,472 over the period, to 20,001,627 – though case figures reported in Scotland cover a period of less than 24 hours.

There were no new coronavirus deaths recorded in the latest 24-hour period in Winchester.

The dashboard shows 207 people had died in the area by March 17 (Thursday) – which was unchanged from Wednesday.

It means there have been four deaths in the past week, which is an increase on none the previous week.

They were among 20,898 deaths recorded across the South East.

READ MORE: Traffic collision on busy crossroads on A272 near Cheriton, Hampshire

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

Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death, so some areas might see their figures revised down.

The figures also show that nearly three-quarters of people in Winchester have received a booster dose of a Covid-19 vaccine.

The latest figures show 85,872 people had received a booster or third dose by March 16 (Wednesday) – 72 per cent of those aged 12 and over, based on the number of people on the National Immunisation Management Service database.

SEE ALSO: Winchester Rotary raises thousands for Ukraine Appeal with High Street collection

A total of 101,680 people (85 per cent) had received two jabs by that date.

Across England, 66 per cent of people aged 12 and above had received a booster.

Unlike at local level, the national rate was calculated using mid-2020 population estimates from the Office for National Statistics.

Message from the editor

Thank you for reading this story. We really appreciate your support.

Please help us to continue bringing you all the trusted news from your area by sharing this story or by following our Facebook page.