The NUMBER of recorded coronavirus cases in Oxfordshire increased by 17 in the last 24 hours, official figures show.

Public Health England data shows that 33,933 people had been confirmed as testing positive for Covid-19 by 9am yesterday in Oxfordshire, up from 33,916 the same time on Thursday.

The health body recently changed the way it records the figures.

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Cases identified through a positive lateral flow test – those which can deliver results within half an hour – will no longer be counted if the person then takes a PCR test, which is sent to a lab to be checked, and receives a negative result within three days.

The rate of infection in Oxfordshire now stands at 4,906 cases per 100,000 people, lower than the England average of 6,878.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases increased by 2,490 over the period, to 4,431,043.

Oxfordshire's cases were among the 541,412 recorded across the South East, a figure which rose by 215 over the period.

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Cumulative case counts include patients who are currently unwell, have recovered and those that have died.

Oxford University Hospitals Trust has said it is caring for four coronavirus patients in hospital as of Tuesday.

NHS England data shows the number of people being treated in hospital for Covid-19 by 8am on May 4 was down from 10 on the same day the previous week.

Across England there were 1,093 people in hospital with Covid as of May 4, with 162 of them in mechanical ventilation beds. Hospitalisations have decreased by 58 per cent in the last four weeks and ventilator use has decreased by 60 per cent.