As the second lockdown comes to an end and Reading enters tier 2, the latest figures show cases numbers in Reading have fallen in the past week.

Last week’s figures showed Covid case numbers in Reading were at their highest rate since the beginning of the pandemic – there were 59 cases in just one day.

But, this week, case numbers have fallen to 211 and a rate of 130 per 100,000.

READ MORE: Reading placed in Covid tier 2: what you can and cannot do

The previous week there were 262 cases and a rate of 162.

Councillor Jason Brock, leader of Reading Borough Council (RBC), has urged people to keep good hand hygiene, wear a mask when in enclosed spaces and keep social distancing ahead of the new tier 2 restrictions.

He added: “I would like to remind people that whilst we are in this High alert tier, you must not mix with other households indoors as we know the risk of passing the virus on to others is highest when inside.

“Meeting up in groups of up to six outdoors is permitted [from December 2], but please still practice social distancing when doing this with those you do not live with.”

Note: The latest figures are for November 18-24. We only looked at data until November 24 because the data is from the specimen date and this is incomplete for the most recent dates.

In West Berkshire, Covid case numbers have fallen once again and the local authority area is now in the bottom 20 areas for Covid case rates in the UK, along with Bracknell.

Bracknell – with 85 cases and a rate of 69 – has the 19th lowest cases per 100,000 across the UK, while West Berkshire – with 108 cases and a rate of 68 – is 18th lowest. READ MORE: Here's how many people have tested positive for coronavirus at the University of Reading

Meanwhile, in Wokingham case numbers dropped again to 180, with a rate of 105.2.

Looking at the wider Berkshire area, cases remain high in tier 3-bound Slough, with 451 cases and a rate of 302, although this has fallen in the last few weeks, while Windsor and Maidenhead case numbers have dropped to 183, with a rate of 121.

How case numbers have changed over the last three months – a timeline

Here is a look at how case numbers have changed since September in Reading, Bracknell, West Berkshire and Wokingham.

September 2-8

Reading started the first week of September with the most cases, with Bracknell just behind.

Reading: 35

Wokingham: 21

West Berks: 11

Bracknell: 27

Sep 9-15

Figures fell in all four areas except Bracknell.

This week had the lowest number of cases of any week in the last two months, with 64 cases across the four authority areas.

Reading: 12

Wokingham: 15

West Berks: 10

Bracknell: 27

Sep 16-22

All four local authorities had very similar case numbers to each other this week, with Bracknell going from having the most cases to the least.

Reading: 30

Wokingham: 30

West Berks: 28

Bracknell: 25

Sep 23-29

Until this week’s figures, this was the last time Wokingham had more cases than Reading.

Reading: 46

Wokingham: 56

West Berks: 40

Bracknell: 24

Sep 30 – Oct 6

Reading’s numbers grew by almost 60 cases during this week, taking it back above Wokingham.

Reading: 103

Wokingham: 82

West Berks: 79

Bracknell: 65

Oct 7-13

Reading and Wokingham had a similar number of cases in this week, while West Berks remained largely the same and Bracknell’s increase slightly.

Reading: 121

Wokingham:120

West Berks: 78

Bracknell: 71

Oct 14-20

This was the week saw the biggest increase in cases in Reading, going up by 59.

Reading: 180

Wokingham: 168

West Berks: 109

Bracknell: 110

Oct 21-27

This week saw Wokingham’s cases fall after rising for five consecutive weeks.

Reading: 194

Wokingham: 147

West Berks: 136

Bracknell: 130

Oct 28 – Nov 3

Cases went up in each area except for Bracknell during this week.

Reading: 250

Wokingham: 159

West Berks: 166

Bracknell: 126

Nov 4-10

This week saw Reading’s cases fall for the first time in eight weeks (since September 9-15).

Additionally, Wokingham’s cases surpassed Reading’s for the first time in six weeks (since September 23-29).

In Bracknell, after an encouraging drop in cases last week, case numbers went up again, while West Berks figures remained on an upward trajectory.

Reading: 234

Wokingham: 251

West Berks: 195

Bracknell: 152

Nov 11-17

In the last week with data, Reading’s case numbers have risen again – and to their highest level during the pandemic – while the other three areas saw a fall in cases.

All other areas saw case numbers fall.

Reading: 262

Wokingham: 204

West Berks: 176

Bracknell: 140

Nov 18-24

In the last week with data, case numbers and rates in every authority have fallen.

Reading: 211

West Berkshire: 108

Wokingham: 180

Bracknell: 85

Figures are from the coronavirus.gov.uk dashboard. Testing has increased over the last few months, which accounts for some of the increase in case numbers across the UK.