Public health advisers are concerned about the number of Covid-19 cases in Carlisle – and “active discussions” are ongoing about whether further restrictions are needed as hospital admissions rise.

Members of Cumbria’s coronavirus response team expressed concern about the Carlisle area, as the number of new cases surpassed Barrow. Carlisle recorded 251 new cases last week, compared with 179 in Barrow.

Director of public health Colin Cox has admitted feeling ‘concerned’ about the situation in Carlisle as hospital admissions and the number of cases amongst older age groups are rising.

He told The Cumberland News the rise in cases makes it even more important to follow local Covid-19 measures.

He warned that the only chance Carlisle will have of keeping coronavirus under control is to restrict social contact.

“I am concerned about the situation in Carlisle. We don’t calculate an R rate at that geographic level but the rate of new cases is higher than the England average at the moment, and there has been a significant rise in the rate of new cases among older age groups in particular.”

He added that hospital admissions are rising.

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“There has been a rise in the number of people in hospital in Carlisle, which is putting extra strain on the hospital system as we start moving towards colder weather.”

The health boss warns that if the infection rate does not slow, Carlisle could see tighter restrictions: “There are active discussions ongoing with national government about the position in Carlisle and whether further restrictions should be brought in.”

The facts give added weight to the importance of following the rules, Mr Cox said: “It’s really important for people to continue to follow the guidance on reducing their contact with other people – we’re still advising everyone in Carlisle to limit their social gatherings to no more than two households as well as following the national Rule of Six.

“Whether Carlisle goes into a higher level of restrictions is really dependent on what people do. Only by restricting social contact will we have any chance of keeping this virus under control and avoiding an escalation in restrictions.”

Assistant Chief Constable Andy Slattery said: “Enforcement is only one part of this, what we really want is for everyone in Cumbria to do their part towards controlling the virus.”

He added that he appreciates this means making sacrifices, but they are necessary to curb the R-rate.

Carlisle city councillor Elizabeth Mallinson, portfolio holder for Health and Wellbeing said: “We need to be vigilant and stick to the public health advice.

“We don’t want to see our city and district go into heightened restrictions. This would impact on our isolated residents, would result in less freedom of movement and could hit our economy hard.

“We urge local families to help protect our communities and minimise the risk of potential lockdowns. Acting now means we can prevent hospital admissions rising in the coming weeks.”