Coronavirus UK map: How many confirmed cases are there in your area?

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There have been nearly 300,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK and more than 44,000 people have died, government figures show.

These numbers only include people who have been tested, and the actual death toll will be higher.

New cases decline - but concern over hotspots

Across the country, the number of newly confirmed cases each day has been falling since a peak in April.

Find out how the pandemic has affected your area and how it compares with the national average:

Public Health England figures on coronavirus cases were updated on 2 July to include people tested in the wider community, as well as hospitals and healthcare workers, causing the numbers to increase sharply. Figures for the rest of the UK already included people tested in the wider population.

If you can't see the look-up click here.

But though the national trend in new coronavirus cases is down, in some areas the virus is spreading more quickly, leading to localised hotspots.

The most recent data shows Merthyr Tydfil has the highest rate of positive tests in the UK, with 179 out of every 100,000 people testing positive in the week to 30 June. The spike is attributed to an outbreak at a local meat processing plant.

The most discussed local hotspot is Leicester, where the government announced it was re-imposing lockdown measures last week, after a jump in cases. Figures released on Thursday showed Leicester still had the highest infection rate in England - with 141 cases per 100,000 people in the week to 28 June.

A full list of infection rates for local areas is at the bottom of this page.

Until recently, the only figures available to local authorities were the results of hospital testing. However, more testing is now taking place in the wider community.

The Department of Health says a data-sharing agreement has now been reached with local authorities, which will give them access to the number of people testing positive in the community in their area.

It should mean that new hotspots can be quickly identified and measures taken to restrict the spread of the disease.

The chart below shows how the growth in community testing (pale blue) has become more significant as positive hospital test results (dark blue) have declined.

Downward trend of daily deaths has slowed

Government-announced deaths from coronavirus peaked mid-April and have been steadily falling since, though the downward trend seems to have slowed recently.

On Monday, the government announced a further 16 deaths in the UK. Figures reported over the weekend are lower than those in the middle of the week, as shown on the the chart below, but the low number of deaths announced on Monday is in line with the recent trend.

The UK has the highest official death toll in Europe and the third highest in the world, after the US and Brazil.

The government has argued it is too soon to make definitive international comparisons but, as the impact of the first wave becomes clear in many countries, analysis is beginning to suggest the UK has been the hardest hit of the leading G7 nations.

The majority of the UK's deaths have been in England, with about 40,000 so far - around 90% of the total for the UK.

Scotland has reported no new deaths since Friday, so the official death toll remains at 2,488. But data on death registrations from the National Records of Scotland (NRS) suggests there had been 4,155 deaths by 28 June.

Wales has recorded 1,531 deaths and Northern Ireland 554.

• Coronavirus in Scotland: Key figures and trends
• What do the stats tell us in Wales?

Figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show the number of deaths from all causes registered in a single week has fallen below the five-year average for the first time since mid-March.

• Death rate 'back to normal' in UK

The new coronavirus, which causes the disease Covid-19, was first confirmed in the UK at the end of January, but the number of daily confirmed cases and related deaths only began to increase significantly by the second half of March.

Lockdown restrictions came into force across the UK at the end of that month. The number of new cases came to a peak mid-April and have been falling steadily since.

The number of deaths as a result of the virus can be measured in three ways. The government's daily announcement counts deaths with a positive test result.

But the ONS also counts death certificates mentioning the virus. This measure suggests there had been almost 54,000 deaths by 19 June.

When looking at deaths over and above the expected number for this time of year - the third way of measuring - the coronavirus death toll rises to more than 65,000 by the same date.

Some of these deaths are likely to include people with undiagnosed coronavirus or those who died as an indirect result of the pandemic.

• Your tributes to those who have died

Coronavirus accounted for about 8% of all deaths in the UK in the week to 19 June, according to death registration data - a drop from 11% the previous week.

In the week to 17 April, when deaths from the virus reached their peak, this figure was just under 40%.

What is the R number in the UK?

The "R number" is the average number of people an infected person will pass the disease on to.

If R is below one, then the number of people contracting the disease will fall; if it is above one, the number will grow.

The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, known as Sage, believes the R number across the whole of the UK is currently between 0.7 and 0.9.

The government says England itself is also between 0.7 and 0.9, but highest in London where it is between 0.8 and 1.1.

The estimate for Scotland is between 0.6 and 0.8. In Northern Ireland, it is between 0.3 and 0.8, while it is between 0.7 and 1.0 in Wales.

The government has said that the R number is one of the most important factors in deciding when lockdown measures can be eased.

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• HOPE AND LOSS: Your coronavirus stories
• GLOBAL TRACKER: How is the world coping?
• TESTING: Can I get tested for coronavirus?

Testing now available to more people

The UK exceeded its target to increase testing capacity to 200,000 a day by the end of May.

However, the UK Statistics Authority has criticised how the data has been presented, saying the aim appeared to be to show "the largest possible number of tests, even at the expense of understanding".

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said he would look at ways the information could be "improved" and government figures now include the number of tests which have been processed as well as how many have been requested each day.

The government said 143,457 tests had been made available in the 24 hours to 09:00 on Monday and of those, 97,315 had been processed.

In total, just over eight million tests have been processed so far.

• Can I get tested?

Who is most at risk from coronavirus?

Most recorded coronavirus deaths have been among the elderly, with NHS England figures showing more than half of deaths have been among people aged over 80.

The disease appears to disproportionally affect men in their 50s and 60s, and the death rate for men outstrips women across all age ranges.

People with underlying health conditions are also at greater risk regardless of age.

Research by Public Health England (PHE) has also found that people from ethnic minorities have a much higher risk of dying from coronavirus than people of white British ethnicity. But it is still not clear why - the study did not take into account occupations or obesity, which are also known to be high risk factors.

Another study found that South Asian people were the most likely to die from coronavirus after being admitted to hospital. It was the only ethnic group found to have a raised risk of death in hospital, which researchers believe is partly due to high levels of diabetes.

The most deprived parts of England and Wales have been hit twice as hard by coronavirus as wealthier areas, according to the ONS.

Most hospitals seeing fewer coronavirus patients

The number of people in hospital with Covid-19 has been gradually declining since a peak over Easter.

However, the picture is different across the UK's nations and regions, with numbers falling faster in some areas than others.

Infection rates by area

Here's a full list so you can see whether the number of people testing positive per 100,000 in your area has gone up or down.