THE coronavirus infection rate in Southampton has fallen, following an earlier spike.

The city saw coronavirus infection rates have had a dramatic fall, which is at 0.8 new cases for every 100,000 residents, in the seven days up to July 18.

But the latest figures released by Public Health England show the rate has decreased in Fareham from 5.2 to 1.7.

Test Valley has also decreased, but to 2.4.

Since July 10, infection rates in the New Forest have increased from 1.1 to 1.7, while Eastleigh has gone from 1.5 to 3.0.

Meanwhile, the rate in Winchester has gone from 1.6 to 0.8 and in Portsmouth from 3.3 to 1.9.

New data is released each week and shows how rates of positive coronavirus tests are changing in each area.

The figures show the rate of new cases in the seven days to July 19, and are based on tests carried out in laboratories and in the wider community.

The rate is expressed as the new number of new cases per 100,000 population.

In Blackburn with Darwen, the rate has jumped from 48.3 cases per 100,000 people in the seven days to July 12 to 79.9 in the seven days to July 19, with 119 new cases recorded.

Second on the list is Leicester, where the rate has gone down from 110.6 to 71.8, and where 255 new cases have been recorded.