The number of recorded coronavirus cases in Southend increased by six in the latest data drop on Friday.

Public Health England figures show that 661 people had been confirmed as testing positive for Covid-19 by 9am on Friday (July 10) in Southend, up from 655 the same time on Thursday.

The health body is now including Pillar 2 tests – those carried out by commercial partners – alongside Pillar 1 tests, which are analysed in NHS or PHE laboratories and which made up the first stage of the Government's mass testing programme.

The rate of infection in Southend now stands at 362 cases per 100,000 people, far lower than the England average of 443.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases increased by 512 over the period, to 288,133.

Southend's cases were among the 23,603 recorded across the East of England, a figure which rose by 40 over the period across the region.

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

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said 44,798 people had died in hospitals, care homes and the wider community after testing positive for coronavirus in the UK as of 5pm on Friday - up by 148 from 44,650 the previous day.

The Government figures do not include all deaths involving Covid-19 across the UK, which are thought to have passed 55,000.

The DHSC also said that in the 24-hour period up to 9am on Saturday, 153,667 tests were carried out or dispatched across all pillars, with 820 positive results. Overall, a total of 288,953 cases have been confirmed.