Deaths Due To Coronavirus Fall To Six-Week Low

The total number of deaths in the UK due to coronavirus has fallen to a six-week low .

According to statistics from the Office of National Statistics, between 11 and 15 May, there were 4,210 death registrations mentioning Covid-19, across the UK, which was down from 4,426 the previous week, it is the lowest weekly figure since the 3,801 for the week ending 10 April.

Coronavirus accounted for just over 25% of all deaths in the UK in the week to 15 May. In the week to 17 April, when deaths from the virus reached their peak, this figure was just under 40%.

The number of COVID-19 deaths in the UK’s care homes has also fallen, with England experiencing 520 less deaths in the week ending 22 May, when compared to the previous week. There were in total 870 coronavirus deaths in England’s care homes (for the week ending 22 May) – a fall from 1,390 deaths the week before (week ending 15 May).

Responding to the latest ONS figures on coronavirus deaths, revealing that deaths involving COVID-19 as a percentage of all deaths in care homes decreased to 37.2 per cent in the week to 15 May, compared with 39.2 per cent in the previous week, Cllr Ian Hudspeth, Chairman of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board, said:

“No one in care should have to suffer from this dreadful disease and every death from this virus is a tragedy.

“Every week, these figures act as a truly tragic reminder of how many of our older and most vulnerable people have lost their lives, leaving behind family and friends in mourning.

“Social care is on the frontline in the fight against coronavirus. While we have started to thankfully see a decline in some figures, it is still incredibly worrying that the percentage of all deaths in care homes attributed to COVID-19 has increased.

“We must continue doing all we can to shield those in our care homes and those who receive care in their own homes.

“Councils want to play their full part in the national effort to overcome coronavirus, but need help and information to understand where the outbreaks are happening more widely and be able to act quickly to contain them. The Government needs to share this vital and up-to-date data with councils, as part of the contact tracing programme.

“It is also crucial the Government’s online PPE ordering system is fully operational as soon as possible, so that councils and care providers can directly request that critical protective equipment gets to the frontline where it is desperately needed.”