Download our Coronavirus Factsheet for England here. It is regularly updated to ensure you are kept up-to-date with the latest changes.
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What is it?
Coronaviruses can make humans and animals sick. Some coronaviruses can cause illness like the common cold and others can cause more serious diseases, including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). This new coronavirus started in Hubei Province, China. The virus was renamed (11th Feb 2020) SARS-CoV-2 and the disease the virus causes is called COVID-19. A new variant of the disease VOC-202012/01 was discovered in October 2020 and is known to spread more quickly than SARS-CoV-2.
COVID-19 key facts
- Its spread through coughs and sneezes when a person is infectious
- It is possible to spread it from surfaces
- You must not go to A& E if you are unwell and think you may have COVID-19
- You must call your GP or 111
- Good hand hygiene is one of the best ways of preventing the spread of the virus
- Cough etiquette helps too
How is it spread?
The coronavirus is most likely to spread from person-to-person through
- Direct close contact with a person while they are infectious
- Close contact with a person with a confirmed infection who coughs or sneezes, or;
- Touching objects or surfaces (such as door handles or tables) contaminated from a cough or sneeze from a person with symptoms and then touching your mouth or face
What are the Symptoms?
The typical symptoms are;
- a high temperature 38C or higher
- a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or
3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be
worse than usual) - a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you’ve noticed you
cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal
How is it spread?
Practising good hand and sneeze/cough hygiene is the best defence against most viruses. You must;
- Wash your hands frequently with soap and water, before and after eating and after going to the toilet
- Cover your cough and sneeze, dispose of tissues and use alcohol-based hand-sanitiser
- Try to avoid using public transport. If you do have to use it, use a face covering
- If unwell, Stay at home, Do not have Visitors, Try to stay away from other people in your house. Stay at
home for 10 days until your temperature has gone
Is there a test to see if you have COVID-19
- anyone with symptoms, can apply to have a COVID-19 test
There is a government website that tells you how to get a test and where you can get tested. This is the web address: https://www.gov.uk/apply-coronavirus-test.
What are the new national restrictions I must follow?
From January 2021 a new national lockdown was implemented in England, which will be regularly reviewed by the government. Restrictions people must follow include:
You must stay at home and only leave your home to:
- shop for basic necessities
- go to work if you cannot work from home
- exercise with your household or one other person from another household, once per day
- meet with your support bubble or childcare bubble
- seek medical assistance
- attend education or childcare
When leaving home you should stay local.
If you are clinically extremely vulnerable you must only go out for medical appointments, exercise or if it is essential. You must not go to work.
You cannot socialise with anyone you do not live with or are not part of your support bubble, unless exercising with one other person from outside your household, in an outdoor public space. This must be done whilst maintaining social distancing.
Face coverings should continue to be worn in all indoor places outside of the home.
COVID-19 key facts
- Wear face coverings in indoor public settings
- Follow the rules on meeting others safely
- Work from where able to do so
- Should walk or cycle where possible
- Should attend education and childcare where eligible to do so
Handwashing is still very important to stay healthy
Follow these steps every time;
1. Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm or cold), turn off the tap, and apply
2. Lather your hands by rubbing them together with the soap. Lather the backs of your
hands, between your fingers, and under your nails
3. Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. How long? Hum the “Happy Birthday”
song from beginning to end twice
4. Rinse your hands well under clean, running water
5. Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry them