Latest COVID-19 update on cases across Berkshire – May 1

[Cookham v Coronavirus]

ALMOST 30 people in Berkshire tested positive for coronavirus in the last 24 hours, the latest figures show.

Public Health England has recorded 27 new lab-confirmed cases in the past 24 hours, in areas including Reading, Bracknell, Wokingham, West Berkshire, Slough and Windsor and Maidenhead.

These figures, correct as of Friday, April 30, bring the latest total for the county to 56,628 coronavirus cases.

The local breakdown for the past 24 hours as follows:

Reading - 7 cases, 10,919 total
Bracknell Forest - 1 cases, 7,086 total
Wokingham - 3 cases, 8,241 total
West Berkshire - 5 cases, 6,375 total
Slough - 7 cases, 15,514 total
Windsor and Maidenhead - 4 cases, 8,493 total

There have now been 4,416,623 people across the UK who have tested positive for Covid-19 - a daily increase of 2,381.

The government said a further 15 people have died having tested positive for Covid-19. The total number of deaths in England is 127,517.

The latest seven-day rate per 100,000 people locally are as follows:

Reading - 27.2
Bracknell Forest - 13.9
Wokingham - 23.4
West Berkshire - 17.7
Windsor and Maidenhead - 31.7
Slough - 53.5
In today's national Covid news:

A single dose of vaccine gives “majorly enhanced” protection against coronavirus variants in people who have previously been infected with Covid-19, a study has found.

Scientists discovered that, in those who have not previously been infected and have only received one dose of the vaccine, their immune response to variants of concern may be insufficient.

In a new paper published by Imperial College London, researchers looked at immune responses in healthcare workers at Barts and Royal Free hospitals in London following their first dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.

Researchers believe it is possible that the findings will apply to other variants in circulation, such as those first identified in Brazil and India.