ST HELENS saw an increased number of coronavirus cases in the latest daily figures in line with the rise nationally.

St Helens saw 41 cases confirmed for the 24 hours up to 9am on Wednesday, September 23, as the UK as a whole saw the daily total jump to 6,178.

The previous three days' figures had seen St Helens record 31 cases each time.

Public Health England now includes in the statistics Pillar two tests – those carried out in the wider community – alongside Pillar one tests, which are analysed in NHS Hospitals or PHE laboratories.

The latest published rolling seven-day rate of infection for St Helens is 111.6 per 100,000 of the population, based on cases between September 13 and 19.

In this period there were 201 positive cases of COVID-19 recorded in St Helens.

On Friday, September 18 a coronavirus patient died at Whiston Hospital, the death is the first to have occurred at the trust since August 3.

This means the trust, which runs Whiston, St Helens and Newton hospitals, has now recorded 210 coronavirus deaths since the start of the outbreak in mid-March.

READ > Coronavirus cases increasing 'consistently' in Thatto Heath

On Tuesday, restrictions were implemented in St Helens, including for people not to socialise with others from outside their household or support bubble inside a home or private garden.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases in Tuesday's figures increased by 6,178.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson also announced national restrictions yesterday in response to the growing national rate.

These include all pubs and restaurants in England closing at 10pm and people being asked to work from home, if they can.

The latest figures mean that 1,806 people in St Helens have been confirmed as testing positive for COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.

The total rate of infection in St Helens since the start of the outbreak in March now stands at 1,000 cases per 100,000 people (one in 100), higher than the England average of 627.

The real number of overall cases is likely to have been much higher due to the lack of testing availability in the wider community during the peak of the pandemic in the spring.

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