Coronavirus cases are continuing to rise as the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) confirms that visiting remains temporarily suspended.

On Saturday, 11 Barrovians tested positive for the virus – bringing the area’s cumulative total up to 737.

In the north-west of England 80 new patients were admitted to hospital, meaning there are now 542 patients in hospital, with 77 of them on ventilation.

UHMBT has confirmed that visiting, barring exceptional circumstances, will remain temporarily suspended due to ongoing risks.

Calling for kindness, the trust said: “We know lives are complex and not every person is the same, but we ask that people are patient and kind with our staff, they don’t want these restrictions either, but Covid hasn’t gone away and we still have some very poorly patients with Covid-19 in.”

Last week saw the introduction of a 10pm curfew on pubs and restaurants, and the introduction of the NHS Test and Trace App.

Dr Shahedal Bari, Medical Director, UHMBT, said: “It's really important that as many people as possible download the NHS Test and Trace App and use it, and that businesses display the signage as well to enable it to be fully helpful. It will be really important in ensuring that the NHS Test and Trace service is able to protect others in society by tracing contacts. We will be supporting this by displaying the QR codes and we urge others across our community to do so.”

On Saturday, there were 4,639 new Covid-19 cases in England, bringing the total up to 368,919.