Community testing teams take to the streets

Teams of Council staff are taking to the streets to help control the spread of Coronavirus in Blackburn with Darwen by encouraging residents to take a home test.

Over the next four weeks, the government is providing 10,000 home test kits to be delivered to homes in some areas of Blackburn with the highest rates of Coronavirus.

The Council’s community testing teams will spend a day in neighbourhoods, knocking on doors to talk to residents and hand out home test kits in the morning, and calling back in the afternoon to collect completed tests.

The Council teams will be joined by medical professionals trained in swabbing techniques who can help householders do the test on themselves or their children, if necessary. These staff will be wearing appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) to keep residents and themselves safe.

They will not enter homes, instead talking to residents on their doorsteps, maintaining a safe distance.

There is no charge for Coronavirus home test kits.

Data from Public Health England is helping the Council to plan this targeted approach to finding out where the virus is most prevalent, and how it is circulating. It will help to identify asymptomatic cases of Coronavirus, where the resident has no idea they could be infectious.

Prof Dominic Harrison is Blackburn with Darwen’s Director of Public Health. He said:

Testing is one of the best ways that we can beat this virus.

Contrary to what some people believe, increasing the amount of testing we do will help us to get out of the local lockdown faster, by identifying cases and preventing the spread of the virus. If we don’t test, we simply won’t have the intelligence to keep track of where the virus is circulating and how it is being passed on.

Using the home test kit is the most convenient way to get tested for Coronavirus. It’s quick, it’s easy and in our community testing teams we’ve got trained medical professionals who can help anyone who doesn’t feel confident enough to do the test on themselves.

Residents should receive their test results within 48 hours. Anyone who receives a positive result must self-isolate at home for 10 days. Their household and anyone they have been in contact with must self-isolate for 14 days.

Councillor Mohammed Khan, Leader of the Council, said:

We understand that there are people who are reluctant to take a test in case they find out they need to self-isolate. We appreciate their concerns, however it is essential to help us get a grip on the spread of the virus locally and to keep our families and loved ones safe.

The government has now made financial support available for people on low incomes who can’t go out to work while they self-isolate because they or someone they’ve been in contact with has Coronavirus. There’s more information about this, and how to claim it, on the Council website.

The Council is encouraging everyone in Blackburn with Darwen to get tested for Coronavirus, even if you have no symptoms. There are a number of ways to arrange your test:

• At the testing facilities at Royal Blackburn Hospital, Corporation Park, Blackburn College and Penny Street in Blackburn. You don’t need to book in advance but you do need to register online first.
• By ordering a home test kit.

Visit www.blackburn.gov.uk/coronavirus for more info about arranging a test.

Councillor Khan added:

I appreciate we have had to make huge sacrifices over the last few months. I want to say a big thank you to everyone who has played their part in helping to beat this virus, by sticking to the rules and keeping themselves and their families safe.