Coronavirus: Liverpool Princes Park Covid-19 spike 'contained'

Liverpool City Council put extra restrictions in place in the Princes Park area

A coronavirus outbreak in Liverpool has been "contained", the city's council has said.

New measures were brought in after 20 cases were recorded in the Princes Park area in just one week - about half of the total for the whole city over that time.

Mayor Joe Anderson praised the efforts of staff and volunteers who distributed information door-to-door.

The number of confirmed cases in the area has since fallen to five.

Mr Anderson said: "We took a decision to move quickly and that decision has proved to be the right one."

The extra restrictions included a ban on the mixing of households, suspending visits to care homes, opening two walk-in testing centres in the area and closing community buildings for 14 days.

From Saturday residents will once again be allowed to make overnight visits to one other household provided they observe social distancing.

There are currently 49 confirmed cases in Liverpool

The extra restrictions included suspending visits to care homes, opening two walk-in testing centres in the area, and closing community buildings for 14 days.

From Saturday residents will once again be allowed to make overnight stays and visits to one other household provided they observe social distancing.

Care home visits can also resume in outdoor areas.

Community buildings can reopen and outdoor gatherings resume provided risk assessments have been completed.

The testing centre at Princes Park health centre will be wound down but the facility at PAL Multicultural centre will operate until 20 August.

Businesses and clinically vulnerable people are advised to continue following national guidance.

Matt Ashton, Liverpool's public health director, said: "What we achieved in Princes Park has shown the value of local teams being able to take quick action and making the best use of the local knowledge.

"We contained an outbreak but the virus has not gone away. My team continue to monitor the numbers of confirmed cases.

"But will still need everyone's help to make sure that those levels remain low."