Reading’s public health expert has issued an update after it was announced the town will move into tier 3 from Saturday.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced this morning that the whole of Berkshire will be under tier 3 Covid restrictions from Saturday at 00:01.

Speaking on Youtube, David Munday, Public Health Consultant for Reading Borough Council (RBC), gave an update on what tier three means for Reading, what the Covid situation is in the town and what you should do to keep safe over the coming weeks.

READ MORE: Reading and the rest of Berkshire placed in tier 3

‘Not happy reading’ – the latest figures

The Covid case rate now stands at 222 cases per 100,000 in the last seven days with available data (December 6-12).

He said: “The latest on the numbers in Reading isn’t happy reading.

“That’s as high as it’s been in this wave of Covid-19.

“Case rates have increase by about 50 per cent over the last seven days and a bit over 6 per cent of people who go for a test come back with a positive result, showing they have got Covid-19.”

Sticking to the rules

Mr Munday thanked people for sticking to the rules, adding: “I know when the weather is less good and evenings are darker, that’s less fun and feels more restrictive.”

And he asked people to follow the new tier 3 rules to address the concerning number of cases.

The public health expert said: “It is really important we stick with the rules in tier 3 to address the numbers I have described.

“The most important part of that is about household mixing, because when I look at the data for Reading, it is not that there are cases in just one part of town or related to just an outbreak associated with a specific place.

READ MORE: Berkshire moves to Tier 3 - what you can and can't do

“Rather, we see this ongoing community transmission – a spread from person to person as they interactive with others.

“So, avoiding that interaction and not mixing is really important. Within tier 3 you can see people from another household but it must only be in an outdoor public space and no more than six people.

“It continues to be important to wash hands regularly, to maintain social distancing from people we don’t live with, and ensure we wear face coverings in enclosed spaces with people we don’t live with.”

‘Be sensible’ – Keeping safe at Christmas and in the new year

 “Christmas is coming and there is a relaxation of the rules, which is both good news in terms of us being able to see our loved ones over Christmas but is also a risk to use in Reading because of the potential for the virus to spread.

“My simple advice to you is be sensible at Christmas time, and over those five days continue to have your Christmas gatherings within a bubble as small as possible.

“Make those gatherings as short as possible, try to travel as little as possible – keep things local – and do think about the most vulnerable people in your family that you might be seeing and whether that is the best decision at this time.

“It is a case of thinking if people are indoors from another household what can you do to make sure you are socially distanced, you have good ventilation, you’ve got good hand hygiene, you’re avoiding the things that might make it more likely to spread the virus to one another.

“Please try to go out for a walk, meet up in a park, do something outdoors, to keep tings as safe as possible.”

He added: “Going into the new year, with the roll-out of the vaccine, we’ve got to hope we will get through this together.

“But for now we need to keep on doing the right thing for Reading and keeping ourselves Covid secure.”