Covid: Indian variant spike in Leek sees 1,000 self-isolating

Residents with links to the schools are being urged to get a rapid PCR test

Almost 1,000 pupils and staff are self-isolating after 31 people with links to two schools and a college tested positive for coronavirus.

Staffordshire health chiefs said 19 of those tested positive for the so-called Indian variant, now named Delta variant by the World Health Organization.

The 31 people have links to Westwood College, St Edward's Middle School and Leek High School, the council said.

Households with links to the schools are urged to get rapid PCR Covid tests.

Staffordshire County Council has rolled out increased testing in the town to "control any outbreak" and said the tests would then be sent for genotyping.

Dr Johnny McMahon, the cabinet member for public health, said the tests were "precautionary".

"The cases are still relatively low, but we need to do everything we can to keep them as low as possible," he said.

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Dr Richard Harling, the council's director for health, added: "Over the bank holiday weekend we saw a sharp surge in the number of positive cases identified in pupils and staff at schools in Leek with some transmission to other family members.

"We want to identify any further cases as quickly as possible and contain this outbreak."

The local authority is offering testing at St Edward's Middle School, Leek High School and Leek Britannia HQ over the coming days.

The county council said staff and customers who visited the following venues on the specified dates are also being urged to get tested, as the positive cases may have visited the venues while infectious:

• The Three Horseshoes Country Inn & Spa, Buxton Road, Blackshaw Moor ST13 8TW between 24 and 26 May

• The Black Lion, 12 Hollow Lane Cheddleton, ST13 7HP between 22 and 23 May