THE uptake of Covid vaccinations in Ludlow is high according to a posting on the website of the Portcullis GP surgery.

Most people who have been offered a vaccination have taken it.

This news comes as shops selling non-essential items reopen in Ludlow and across south Shropshire and in Tenbury and the Teme Valley.

The group in which the highest proportion of people have turned down the opportunity for a vaccination is those aged over 60 where seven per cent have declined.

Six per cent of those aged between 18 and 69 with a medical condition have also declined to take a jab.

In care homes there was a 100 per cent take up of the first dose and 50 per cent have received their second jab.

For patients aged 80 or over 98 per cent have received a first dose and just two per cent declined. For those aged 75, there has been a 99 per cent uptake.

In the category four cohort, aged over 70 and patients aged 18-19 who have been shielding, there has been a 98 per cent uptake.

In people aged over 65, 97 per cent have accepted a first vaccination.

‘The rate in Ludlow currently is of 0-2 cases in the last week and our rate per 100,000 is practically zero,” according to the post.

“Most areas in the UK are currently experiencing rates of less than 50 cases per 100,000 population. In Shropshire the rate is 11.8 per 100,000 which is extremely low.“While we're desperate for some sort of normality to resume, lots of people are still anxious about a post-Covid future.

“The important thing, of course, is to take things at your own pace and speak to your friends and family about how your feeling, it is normal to feel anxious about the next steps.“It is important we take things slowly and continue to take precautions, wash hands, meet friends outdoors and continue to wear face masks.

“In order to reassure you a little we do want to share with you that the data is looking excellent in Ludlow as well as the entire country.”

There has been a slow down in the level of vaccinations in recent weeks as the focus turns to making sure that people who had an early jab received their second dose.