FIVE boosts in the battle against Covid have emerged in the latest statistics released by City of York Council.

The authority's Covid data tracker report says there were NO confirmed Covid-19 cases affecting either staff or residents at any care home across the York area as of last Wednesday - the first time in many months this has occurred - and the last outbreak involving two or more people was as long ago as February 25.

It also says:

*Only six children of primary and secondary school age tested positive for Covid at six York schools in the seven days up to March 29.

*Only two people at the University of York were self-isolating after a positive Covid test, compared with 331 last October, and only three were at York St John University, compared with 82 last October.

*Only ten Covid patients were in general and acute beds at York Hospital as of last Tuesday, compared with 157 on January 19.

*A total of 92,113 York residents had had their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine by last Tuesday, representing 52.9 per cent of the estimated adult population, and a total of 9,857 residents had had both doses, representing 5.7 per cent of the estimated adult population.

The report added that in the seven days to March 25, the Strensall ward saw a statistically significant fall in Covid infection rates, while Westfield saw a significant rise, while other wards had no statistically significant change in rates.