03 February 2021

One in seven people in England has had Covid-19, figures suggest

03 February 2021

Around one in seven people in England would have tested positive for Covid-19 antibodies by mid-January, figures suggest.

Data from blood studies from private households suggests a rise in the number who have had coronavirus in England – up from an estimated one in nine people in December and one in 11 in November.

The figures come from the Office for National Statistics Covid-19 Infection Survey and do not include people in care homes, hospitals or other institutions.

HEALTH Coronavirus (PA Graphics)

An estimated one in nine people in Wales had been infected by mid-January, up from one in 14 in December.

For Scotland, the estimate was one in 10, up from one in 13, and for Northern Ireland it was one in 11, up from one in 14.

The ONS said it had found “substantial variation” in the proportion of people estimated to have tested positive for Covid-19 antibodies across the regions.

HEALTH Coronavirus (PA Graphics)

The highest figure was 21% in London, followed by the West Midlands (18.8%) and Yorkshire & the Humber (18.7%).

South-west England was estimated to have the lowest level (8.3%), followed by south-east England (10.2%) and eastern England (10.8%).

Estimates for the other regions were north-west England 18.1%, north-east England 16.2% and the East Midlands 15.7%.

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