New Covid jab site as cases keep on falling

The Alastair Farquharson Centre at Thurrock Community Hospital is to become a Covid-19 vaccination centre, it was revealed.

The vaccine centre is one of six announced this week, including Chelmsford City Racecourse and Colchester United Football Club and the Cliffs Pavilion in Southend.

The new centres are among a series opening nationally this week as the NHS rapidly accelerates the number of sites that can give the crucial first dose of the vaccine.

People in the top four priority groups including people aged 70 years old and over, and those who are clinically extremely vulnerable, are being invited to book an appointment at the vaccination centres through the national booking service.

The centres will also be vaccinating health and care staff who are being urged to get their first dose as soon as possible to protect themselves and others.

The six new large-scale vaccination centres are planned to go live over the coming week.

It comes as more than 50 new coronavirus deaths were recorded at hospitals in mid and south Essex. 

NHS England figures show 1,981 people had died in hospital at the Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust as of 5pm on Sunday, January 31.

That was an increase of 51 compared to Friday, when there were 1,930.

The trust is made up of Basildon, Southend and Broomfield hospitals.

The victims were  among 8,537 deaths recorded across the East of England.

Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death.

Official figures also show the number of Covid cases is dropping across many parts of the borough.

Tilbury saw 66 cases and this was down -48 and -42.1 per cent, in Grays Chafford Gorges and Orsett Road the number of cases is at 35, and the the rate has decreased relative to the previous week by 20 and -36.4 per cent.

Purfleet, South Stifford and Lakeside also saw a drop in the number of cases to 56 and this is a reduction of 50 and 47.2 per cent.