Covid-19 cases in the county have more than doubled from what they were before restrictions were lifted last month.  

On February 24, the Government ended the legal requirement to self-isolate following a positive test. This date also saw the end of self-isolation support payments, routine contact tracing and asking close contacts to self-isolate.

From April 1, the Government will no longer advise people who test positive to stay at home.

READ MORE: The Oxfordshire schools that are closed to pupils

In a statement in the House of Commons on February 21 Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the Government will “encourage people with Covid-19 symptoms to exercise personal responsibility”, in the same way “we encourage people who may have flu to be considerate to others”.

The lifting of Covid-19 rules was not welcomed by all in the county.

Ben McCay, co-chair of trustees at disability charity My Life My Choice, warned in February that the lifting of restrictions would have a “great impact” on the vulnerable people who use the organisation.

Since restrictions were lifted last month, cases in Oxfordshire have slowly ticked upwards and are once more above 1,000 cases a day.  

The latest figures from March 29 show there were 1,097 daily cases recorded.

The cases in each district are:

Oxfordshire - 1,097

Oxford – 196

South Oxfordshire – 239

Vale of White Horse – 230

West Oxfordshire – 181

Cherwell – 251

Last week, on March 22 the cases in each district were:

Oxfordshire: 1,427

Oxford – 248

South Oxfordshire – 310

Vale of White Horse – 336

West Oxfordshire – 243

Cherwell – 290

Last month, on February 28 the cases were:

Oxfordshire: 496

Oxford – 110

South Oxfordshire – 116

Vale of White Horse – 88

West Oxfordshire – 67

Cherwell – 115

Last year, on March 29 the cases were:

Oxfordshire: 36

Oxford – 8

South Oxfordshire – 10

Vale of White Horse – 10

West Oxfordshire – 3

Cherwell – 5

Ansaf Azhar, corporate director of public health and wellbeing at Oxfordshire County Council, said: “As society has continued to get back to normal, COVID cases have risen throughout the country and Oxfordshire has followed that trend.

“It has largely been due to the BA.2 variant, a version of omicron that’s more transmissible but isn’t leading to worse outcomes, and the rise in cases does now appear to be slowing.

“If you are unwell, please stay home if you can and reduce contacts, and there are still many simple things you can do to reduce your chance of becoming unwell and of passing on to others.

“These include ventilation of rooms, washing hands, and wearing masks in crowded settings. We encourage everyone eligible for a vaccine to come forward and accept that offer.”

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