Overview

• Official data show confirmed cases up 22.2% and deaths up 5.1% in the week to September 24.
• NHS guidance advises adults who test positive to stay home for five days, with three days recommended for under‑18s.
• People who test positive are urged to wait ten days before seeing elderly or immunocompromised contacts.
• Some hospitals in England and Wales have reintroduced mandatory face masks in specific departments.
• Community pharmacists, including Well Pharmacy’s George Sandhu, are urging symptomatic people to get tested, with pharmacies offering antigen tests and booster vaccinations.