Everyone aged 16+ in certain postcode areas will be encouraged to test.
The government has announced today that all adults within specified postcode areas will be asked if they want to test for Covid-19 in an effort to stop the spread of a South African variant of the virus.
The move comes as 11 cases of the more transmissible South African variant have been detected in people who have not recently travelled.
Everyone over the age of 16 will be encouraged to test regardless of whether they have symptoms.
The following postcode areas will be targeted for the extra testing:
- W7 and W17 in west London
- CR4 in south London
- WS2 in Walsall
- ME15 in Maidstone, Kent
- PR9 in Southport
- EN10 in Broxbourne, Hertfordshire
- GU21 in Woking
Dr Susan Hopkins of Public Health England said the extra testing was aimed at trying to stop further spread of the new variant.
