Corby to host county's first rapid lateral flow Covid test centre

It's understood it will open next week
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A rapid Covid test centre which can return results in as little as 30 minutes will soon open in Corby.

The Northants Telegraph understands the lateral flow test centre - which would be the first in Northamptonshire - will open next week at the Lodge Park Sports Centre in Shetland Way.

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The testing regime will be used to test those who cannot work from home during the lockdown, even if they don't have symptoms.

Lodge Park Sports Centre.Lodge Park Sports Centre.
Lodge Park Sports Centre.

It's hoped that the tests will pick up more asymptomatic cases and make sure they isolate rather than going to work and unknowingly spread the virus.

However, concerns have been raised about the accuracy of the tests.

A trial in Liverpool last year found they detected just under half of Covid infections in asymptomatic people compared to a PCR test.

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And since this article was published the UK regulator said it had not authorised daily lateral flow tests in schools because of concerns people may be given false assurances if they were to test negative, The Guardian reports.

It's understood Corby Council, who run the sports centre, will help with the running of the test centre.

Corby MP Tom Pursglove said: "Lateral flow device testing (used to identify those who are infectious but do not have any symptoms) is being rolled out across the county over the next few weeks.

"This is exactly the type of test used by frontline health and social care workers to reduce risk in clinical settings. The roll out will be escalated in Corby and will include larger high risk workplace settings, including distribution and production/manufacturing sites, starting imminently.

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"A community testing centre which will operate a booking system for local residents, which I understand will be established very soon, and I will be sure to share further updates as I have them."

How the rapid tests work

- A swap is taken from the nose or throat

- The specimen is added to an extraction tube

- Drops of a solution are added to the test cartridge

- Results are returned after a 20-30 minute wait

The move to open the test centre is being introduced after a worrying rise in Covid-19 cases in Corby since the turn of the new year.

On one day last week it recorded the highest jump in positive case rates in England.

Its case rate was also hovering around the top 30 in the country after almost tripling in a week.

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Corby Council leader Tom Beattie pleaded with Prime Minister Boris Johnson to close all non-essential firms after this paper revealed that the town’s iForce warehouse was still bussing-in dozens of workers each week from London.

As of yesterday 2,913 people had tested positive for the virus in Corby. Its seven-day rate was 929.1 cases per 100,000 people, the highest in Northamptonshire.

The county's Covid response hub has been contacted for comment.