Huge increase in child virus fear calls in Sunderland

NHS England data shows 1,149 possible cases in the under-18s were logged on the NHS 111 service in the Sunderland Clinical Commissioning Group area in September – nine times more than in August.

It was the highest monthly total recorded for children who reported symptoms since March when the outbreak began.

The vast majority – 76% – of the reports were done through online assessments, with the remaining 24% being handled over the phone.

The number of adult users logging symptoms also increased significantly between August and September – from 927 to 2,476.

Across England, the number of children being reported with symptoms rose from just 21,000 in August to 186,000 in September but experts say children remain relatively unaffected by Covid, despite the number with symptoms increasing by almost tenfold when term started.

Official guidance from the Department of Health and Social Care says parents should only book a test if their child has a high temperature, a new continuous cough, or a loss of smell or taste and do not need one if they have just a runny nose, are sneezing or are feeling unwell.

An NHS spokeswoman said: “We encourage the public to continue to use NHS 111 as their first port of call for medical help, and stress the importance of following government guidelines on social distancing and hand hygiene to reduce the spread of the virus.”