More than a third of close contacts of people with coronavirus are still not being reached by the test and trace system in Shropshire, amid a record number of new positive cases.

Data from the Department for Health and Social care shows 1,529 people who tested positive for Covid-19 in Shropshire were transferred to the Test and Trace service between May 28 and October 21.

That means 299 new cases were transferred in the latest seven-day period – the largest increase since the regime began.

Contact tracers ask new patients to give details for anyone they were in close contact with in the 48 hours before their symptoms started.

This led to 3,477 close contacts being identified over the period – those not managed by local health protection teams, which are dealt with through a call centre or online.

But just 62.7% of those were reached, meaning 1,297 people were not contacted or did not respond.

That was slightly up from the 61.9% reached in the period to October 14.

Across England, 58.1% of contacts not managed by local health protection teams were reached and told to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace in the latest week to October 21.

Local health protection teams deal with cases linked to settings such as hospitals, schools and prisons.

The contact tracing rate including these cases was 60.3% – up slightly from the week before, when it was at a record low.

Around 120,000 new cases were transferred nationally in the week to October 21.