ST HELENS care homes recorded just one new case of coronavirus over the past week, as a worrying rise in infections appeared to subside.

Cases in the borough’s care homes, which currently have imposed visiting restrictions, began to rise in the middle of October.

According to data collated from St Helens Borough Council, a total of 67 people tested positive for Covid-19 between November 6 and 13.

This was an increase in 32 cases week on week, and was the highest jump in cases since May.

Since then, the number of new cases have fallen dramatically, as the coronavirus infection rate continues to fall across the borough and the wider region.

In the seven days up to November 20, a total of 72 people tested positive for Covid-19 in St Helens care homes, an increase of five on the previous week.

In the most recent reporting period, between November 20 and 27, that figure jumped by just one to 73.

The data is gathered daily directly from each care home and is accurate at that time of collation.

St Helens Borough Council says it may differ from the figures from other official sources, such as Public Health England and ONS, as there may be a delay in official sources of information.

If we look at admissions and bed occupancy data, just one person was admitted with Covid-19 from St Helens’ care homes to Whiston Hospital between November 16 and 22, the latest data available.

Admissions in general are falling at St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Whiston, St Helens and Newton hospitals.

As of November 24, there were 82 Corvid patients being cared for within the trust, compared to 94 one week earlier.

The number of coronavirus patients in Whiston Hospital’s intensive care also reduced from eight to five during that week.

Earlier this month, the trust’s chief executive Ann Marr said it was preparing for what is “likely to be the most challenging winter we’ve ever faced”.

Ms Marr also revealed that some non-emergency operations have been cancelled as a result of the second wave to allow theatre staff to be redeployed to its intensive care unit.

She told the People’s Board, which carries out the statutory functions of the health and wellbeing board (HWB) and the community safety partnership, that the majority of elective activity remains in place.

Ms Marr also made a plea to the trust’s partners to support it this winter in its efforts to maintain bed space.

“We desperately don’t want to stop treating anybody else,” she said

“So as well as trying to care properly for the Covid patients, we really do want to carry on doing all the things we would normally do.

“And I suppose this is where the ask comes in because one of the things we absolutely can’t have is beds occupied by parents who could be somewhere else

“So we need to be able to keep the flow of discharges to homes and other places flowing. We also need all the help we can get to avoid hospital admissions where that’s possible as well.

“We are quite reliant on support from our various partners to be able to cope with what could be a really difficult time.”