ALMOST 400 new coronavirus cases have been recorded across Dorset within the last 24-hour period, according to the latest statistics.

The latest Government figures show 398 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in the county in the 24 hours leading up to 4pm on Saturday, July 17.

In the Dorset Council area, 157 new cases were reported. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been 14,162 cases confirmed across this area.

The rolling seven-day period for the Dorset Council area is 639 cases, with a case rate of 168.8 per 100,000 people.

There has been a total of 241 new cases recorded across the BCP Council, taking the total number of coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic to 30,093.

The rolling seven-day period for the BCP is 1,206 cases, with a case rate of 305.1 per 100,000 people.

During the course of the coronavirus pandemic, there have been 44,255 cases of Covid-19 confirmed across Dorset.

Elsewhere, the New Forest area recorded 96 new coronavirus cases. The total number of cases since the start of the pandemic stands within the New Forest at 7,503.

The seven-day total for New Forest is 425, with a case rate of 236 per 100,000 people.

Across the UK, there has been a total of 54,674 new cases. There have been 5,386,340 confirmed cases recorded in the UK since the start of the pandemic.