The number of people who have tested positive for Covid in Oldham fell at the weekend, but the weekly rate is still rising.

The latest figures released by the Office of National Statistics shows that there were 98 cases recorded, which was down from 185 on Friday.

The figure means that over the last seven days there were 887 cases in the town, representing a worrying rise of 200 and 29.1% from the previous week.

Across the UK the number of cases has risen by 14% meaning the rate of increase in Oldham is double the national average.

There was one death recorded on Sunday which means the weekly figure stands at nine which has come down from 17 the week before.

The latest figures means the amount of people in the town who have been found to have the virus has now reached 18,000.

The data also showed that up to January 3 1,092,885 had been given the first dose of the vaccine across the UK.

An reproduction rate of less than 1 is needed to get the virus under control, but in the north west this is believed to currently be between 1 and 1.4.

The latest death in Oldham means there have been 467 deaths in the area within 28 days of testing positive for Covid19 and 520 deaths which had the virus listed as the cause on the death certificate.

The death rate in the area stands at 197 per 100,000 meaning that it is one of the worst affected areas in the country.

The only places to have recorded a higher death rate include Wigan, Tameside, Sunderland, South Tyneside, Rotherham, Rochdale, Havering, Hartlepool, Doncaster, Bury and Blackpool.