The 5 tests Tier 2 Berkshire areas must pass to move out into Tier 1

The second national lockdown is now over, with every area of Berkshire other than Slough placed in tier two restrictions.

Reading, Wokingham Borough, Bracknell Forest, West Berkshire and Windsor and Maidenhead all went into tier two on December 2.

The move to designate almost all areas in tier two came as a surprise in Bracknell and West Berkshire, which both have an infection rate below 90 per 100,000 people.

And infection rates in most areas of Berkshire are on the decline after reaching all time highs in November.

A big question is how can a place move from tier two to tier one?

What restrictions an area is placed in is based on five factors, which are expected to be under review every two weeks. The first review of the tier system will be on December 16, with the system likely to be in place as late as spring.

Low infection rates are one of the five factors the government are considering when deciding which tier to place areas in.

Matt Hancock has outlined the five factors being considered to determine tiers for each area.

They are:

1. The case detection rate in all age groups

2. Case detection rates in the over 60s

3. How quickly case rates are rising and falling

4. Positivity in the general population - the percentage of tests that return a positive result

5. Pressure on the NHS including current and projected capacity, bed occupancy, and staff absences

If an area meets these parameters, then it will be dropped down in tier one.