Health bosses in Dudley are reminding residents of the need to continue to follow Covid restrictions, with the borough recording a slight increase in Covid-19 cases compared with last week.

From 29 March, outdoor gatherings including in private gardens, of either six people or two households will be allowed and the ‘Stay Home’ rule ends. However, meeting indoors remains banned and people are asked to continue to minimise travel and avoid contact with other households wherever possible.

People from different households who are not in a support bubble will still need to socially distance from each other. Restrictions remain in place to limit movement, including guidance against people staying away from their main residence overnight. Campsites and self-contained holiday accommodation remain closed until at least April 12, after the Easter weekend.

Residents are reminded to isolate and get a standard Covid-19 test if they have any symptoms: a new continuous cough, a high temperature, a loss or change to sense of taste or smell. Anyone who feels generally unwell and is displaying other symptoms should get tested as a precaution dudley.gov.uk/coronavirustesting.

Anyone leaving their home for any reason and not displaying symptoms is encouraged to participate in asymptomatic (lateral flow) testing twice a week at locations across Dudley borough.

Parents and carers and bubbles of children and young people are among those who also have priority access to home testing, via dudley.gov.uk. Karen Wright, director of public health at Dudley Council, said:

"I want to thank people living and working in Dudley for all they continue to do to keep themselves and their families and friends safe. As Easter approaches and we see a slight relaxation of some of the rules, some people may be tempted to bend the rules, but we must all continue to follow the guidance to protect our communities and work our way out of lockdown safely.

"We can all play our part by keeping our distance, wearing face coverings and practising good hand hygiene. Anyone who leaves home for work as well as those with children in school should be using lateral flow tests wherever possible as this will help to detect and contain asymptomatic cases."

It is estimated that around one in three cases of Covid-19 are asymptomatic. There were 84 cases per 100,000 people in the latest week 14 March to 20 March, an overall increase of 104 cases compared with the previous week.

The latest government advice can be viewed online at gov.uk/coronavirus.