With infection rates remaining at a high level in the west of the city, City of York Council has announced that the symptom-free Covid-19 testing that has been available at Acorn Rugby Club on Thanet Road for the past week is to be extended.

So far around 1,000 tests have been carried out and to offer more people the chance to get tested, the site will be open on Thursday 14 January and then from Saturday 16 January and Wednesday 20 January inclusive with the same opening times as before (9am-3pm).

It is not a ‘drive-through’ site, so you can attend on foot. Testing can be undertaken on anyone aged 5 and over.

1 in 3 cases of Covid-19 have no symptoms and people can spread the virus without knowing it to those who may have a more serious illness as a result of catching it. Finding these symptom-free cases will help to reduce rates in the coming weeks.

You can book a test by visiting www.nhs.uk/Coronavirus or calling 119 and selecting the option that you were asked to attend by your local council.

On the website you may find that Acorn Rugby Club doesn’t appear as a testing site to choose. This happens most afternoons. If Acorn doesn’t appear on the list, please try again after 6.30pm when the testing slots for Acorn are usually released for the following day.

Thanks for your support.