• The Echo reports, external that the boss of a Westcliff care home says her staff are "scared" as they cope with the loss of nearly one-third of their residents during the coronavirus pandemic
• An Essex Charity has secured more than £1m in donations for its emergency coronavirus appeal in the space of less than a month according the Chelmsford and Mid Essex Times, external
• While the Gazette reports, external Colchester Council's Helpline staff have responded to more than 3,000 calls for help since the start of the lockdown

A minute's silence has been held in the East of England as the region paid tribute to key workers who have died during the coronavirus pandemic.

Healthcare staff in Milton Keynes, Letchworth, Bedford and King's Lynn were among those paying respects to their colleagues at 11:00 BST.

At Southend Hospital, empty shoes were laid out in front of the site to symbolise UK workers who have lost their lives.

Shoppers in Bury St Edmunds also stopped in their tracks and Cambridgeshire police officers fell silent outside their Huntingdon headquarters.

Image source, Ely Cathedral

Staff and volunteers at Ely Cathedral are the latest to pledge support to the 2.6 Challenge, external.

It aims to raise money for charity during the lockdown, and was launched on Sunday when the 26-mile London Marathon should have been held.

Fundraisers can invent their own activity based around the numbers 2.6 or 26.

Edmund Aldhouse, director of music at the cathedral, took on the challenge of playing 26 scales on his home keyboard in 26 minutes - including all the major and minor scales, plus two additional ones.

He said any money raised money would go to the Ely Cathedral Trust, external and to the central national pot run by the 2.6 Challenge, external organisers.

Here are how the papers in Northamptonshire are covering the coronavirus.

• Managers of food banks serving, external Wellingborough and Rushden have appealed for help to restock their shelves for vulnerable families, reports the Northampton Telegraph
• The Northampton Chronicle and Echeo reports on how a local B&M has donated more than £1,000, external to a Northamptonshire charity that is working to support older people during the pandemic
• Fifty care homes in Northamptonshire have been hit by a coronavirus outbreak, says the Daventry Express, external

The MP for Epping Forest, Dame Eleanor Fulton Laing, tweeted this picture of a sparsely occupied House of Commons marking today's one minute's silence.

The Conseravative is one of the few MPs in the chamber today. A "hybrid" Parliament - with some MPs in Westminster and others connected via video link - began last week.

Up to 50 MPs will be allowed inside the Commons at a time, sitting apart from each other in line with social distancing guidelines.

The chairman and chief executive of Watford Football Club, said a resumption of top-level football should be off the agenda until the burden on the NHS has become less severe.

Scott Duxbury said: "I feel uncomfortable at this stage even talking about football, because there are people dying, there are stresses on the NHS and that has to be a priority.

"Do I want to renew football? Absolutely, but when it is safe and when the government says it is absolutely fine."

Image source, West Herts Hospital

The club's stadium is currently being used as the "Team West Herts Sanctuary, external" for staff from the neighbouring Watford General Hospital - offering free breakfast, lunch, overnight accommodation, seating areas, as well as laundering hospital scrubs.

BBC Radio Suffolk

A hospital chief executive is appealing to anyone who feels unwell not to worry about attending their GP and A&E clinic during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Nick Hulme, who's in charge of Ipswich and Colchester hospitals, was responding to an emotional email from a BBC Radio Suffolk listener in Australia, whose sister had been afraid to attend hospital with an infection.

She died of sepsis on 25 April.

"I'm worried about people who are a bit concerned about their health, who would normally seek medical advice from their GP or hospital," he said.

"They're simply not doing it.

"We've seen a massive reduction in referrals from GPs of people who might have cancer - those referrals are down by 75%.

"I've spent years trying to tell people not to attend A&E [unless necessary] - my message this morning is the opposite.

"If you don't seek medical advice, the consequences could be very serious."

Scientists are researching how coronavirus tests can be sped up.

Stephen Bustin, from Cambridgeshire and Essex-based Anglia Ruskin University, external, is hoping the 90 minute test can be reduced to 20 and then eventually to five minutes.

The professor of molecular medicine said the testing "helps us understand the disease itself because until now we have very little idea of how long the virus persists and how the body fights back".

"Testing is essential to not just identifying patients at risk or those who have recovered from the virus, but also helps us find out how biology devises itself," he added.

Image source, Getty Images

Doctors, nurses and and other staff from Watford General Hospital went into Watford Football Club's Vicarage Road stadium where they observed a minute's silence for NHS staff and careers who have died after contracting coronavirus.

The siblings have been working on adapting a portable flu testing kit to check for Covid-19.

Police officers in Essex were among those taking part in today's minute's silence to remember NHS and other key workers who’ve lost their lives to coronavirus.

The Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Kathryn Holloway has said "don't travel" to wish Captain Tom Moore a happy birthday.

She said at the request of the family, and to ensure his own health and safety, you should stay at home and not go to his property in Marston Moretaine.

His birthday is on Thursday, when he will turn 100.

He has so far raised more than £29m for the NHS, by walking more than 100 laps round his garden.

A quicker coronavirus test has begun to be rolled out, giving results in just 90 minutes.

The Chief Constable of Bedfordshire police has praised the public's response to lockdown, and his officers for their work in trying to enforce it.

Garry Forsyth posted a message on social media.

He said his force was "committed to respond to concerns" and "overall support has been brilliant".

He added that having to stay in "can be frustrating" but our "sacrifices are starting to have a positive impact".

A pop-up centre to test essential workers for Covid-19 is opening today in Essex.

The Army has taken over part of Dovercourt Bay Lifestyles leisure centre in Harwich to run a mobile testing unit for key workers displaying symptoms, by appointment only., external

Specially-trained military personnel are collecting swabs which are then sent to laboratories for testing, with results usually available within 48 hours.

Image source, Tendering District Council

Alex Pope
BBC News Online

There are so many different ways to stay active during lockdown, including taking part in the 2.6 challenge.

Anyone can take part by doing anything with the number 26 or 2.6 in it, to mark the length of the London Marathon, which should have taken place on Sunday.

Here are firefighters from Stanground in Peterborough, showing us how it can be done.

Don't forget there is a minute's silence to remember NHS and other key workers who’ve lost their lives to coronavirus.

The silence at 11:00 is being marked by the BBC on BBC One, the BBC News channel and across radio networks.

Many other organisations will be stopping work for a moment's reflection:

Image source, My Chemical Romance

Three sold-out summer concerts in Milton Keynes by the US band My Chemical Romance, external have been postponed until 2021.

The band were due to play Stadium MK on 18, 20 and 21 June, but will play 17, 19 and 20 June next year instead.

"We must put the health of our fans and families first," a band statement said.

"We intend to come back and play – in fact, we can’t wait to play – and hope you will be there with us, hope there is much to celebrate."

Tickets will remain valid for the days of the week for which you purchased your tickets and refunds will also be available, the band said.

The band were also due to play at the Eden Project in Cornwall and in Dublin as part of their 2020 tour, external.

A special thank you has been bestowed upon the person who painted a "thank you" to NHS staff outside a hospital in Cambridgeshire.

Hinchingbrooke Hospital in Huntingdon said the "fab road artwork" on its approach was a "lovely message to greet you on your way to work".

"Thank you to the person who created it," a spokesman said.

Image source, Hinchingbrooke Hospital

Doctors warn patients "scared" of coronavirus and burdening the NHS are not seeking treatment.