Mobile covid testing unit to visit Stamford and the Deepings for people without symptoms to collect tests
A mobile covid testing unit is visiting Stamford and the Deepings to help the public do their bit to prevent the spread of the virus.
The asymptomatic testing unit is available for anyone without symptoms to collect test kits for use at home.
Around one in three people with coronavirus do not show symptoms. Asymptomatic testing helps identify and isolate those who have Covid-19 but don’t know it, who may inadvertently be spreading the virus. Those who test positive, along with anyone they live with, should self-isolate.
The facility will be available 10am to 3pm at:
- Friday, May 7 - Stamford Leisure Centre
- Saturday, May 15 - Deepings Leisure Centre
- Friday, May 21 - Stamford Leisure Centre
Home testing kits are also available for anyone to collect from Grantham West Community Centre, Trent Road, Grantham, as well as from the walk-through testing station at Queen Elizabeth Park, Grantham.
All sites are covid-secure. Face masks must be worn and social distancing guidance adhered to, while one-way systems and hand sanitiser dispensers are in place.
If you are not able to collect in person, you can order online for home delivery from https://www.gov.uk/order-coronavirus-rapid-lateral-flow-tests or by telephoning 119 (lines are open 7am to 11pm and calls are free).
Residents can also collect home test kits from selected community pharmacies: https://maps.test-and-trace.nhs.uk
A spokesman for SKDC said: “The test for people without symptoms of COVID-19 is called a rapid lateral flow test and can be carried out at home or at a test site. This simple test involves rubbing a long cotton bud over your tonsils (or where they would have been) and inside your nose. It gives a result in 30 minutes. People are urged to take a test twice a week.”
SKDC’s testing station is at Grantham West Community Centre, open on Mondays 8.30am-2.30pm; Tuesdays 12noon-6pm; Wednesdays 8.30am-2.30pm; Thursdays 12noon-6pm. No appointment is needed and the last tests are carried out 30 minutes before the closing time.
Details of other testing sites in Lincolnshire are available at www.lincolnshire.gov.uk
Anyone showing any symptoms is urged not to go to an asymptomatic test site or collect home test kits, but book a Covid-19 test by calling 119 or visiting www.gov.uk/get-coronavirus-test
Symptoms include:
- a high temperature
- a new, continuous cough
- a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste
