New coronavirus testing facility opens in Havant

The testing centre is based at the Civic Centre Car Park and is easily accessible without a car.

Appointments must be booked in advance and testing is only available for those with coronavirus symptoms – a high temperature, a new, continuous cough, or a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste.

Anyone with one or more of these symptoms should book a test at nhs.uk/coronavirus or by calling 119.

People attending the facility will be required to follow public health measures, including social distancing, not travelling by taxi or public transport, practising good personal hygiene and wearing a face-covering throughout, including while travelling to and from the testing centre.

They will be provided with guidance on getting to and from the test site safely, with additional support for vulnerable groups and people with disabilities.

Testing at the new site started yesterday, with appointments made available each day and results expected the following day.

The centre is being operated in partnership with Sodexo and will offer self-administered tests.

Anyone testing positive for the virus will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace to help them track their contacts.

Close contacts of those testing positive will also hear from NHS Test and Trace, who will ask them to stay at home for 14 days to prevent them from unknowingly spreading the virus.

They will be advised to also book a test if they develop symptoms.

There are now more than 500 testing sites across the UK – including 77 drive-through sites, 155 walk-through sites and 258 mobile units.

Health Minister Lord Bethell said: “We continue to expand testing to make sure that everyone with symptoms can get a test, with our new walk-in sites making it even easier no matter where you live.

“This new site forms part of our national testing network, which has the capacity to test more than a million people a week and is growing all the time.

“If you have symptoms of coronavirus, I urge you to book a test today and follow the advice of NHS Test and Trace if you are contacted to protect others around you and stop the spread of the virus.”

Baroness Dido Harding, Interim Executive Chair of the National Institute for Health Protection, said: “Our new walk through sites offer communities better access to coronavirus testing, so everyone with symptoms can get a test. This new site is part of our ongoing work to expand testing across the UK to deliver 500,000 tests a day by the end of October.

“Please book a test if you have coronavirus symptoms: a new continuous cough, a high temperature and a loss or change in sense of smell or taste.

“Everybody should continue to think hands, face, space, and follow the advice of NHS Test and Trace if you are contacted – this is the only way we can return to a more normal way of life.”