After two months of lockdown the NHS Test and Trace system is finally live with Redbridge residents urged to comply with stay at home advice if contacted.

Anyone who tests positive for coronavirus will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace to share information about their recent interactions.

This could include household members, people with whom they have been in direct contact, or within two metres of for more than 15 minutes.

The service will help identify, contain, and control coronavirus, reduce the spread of the virus, and save lives.

People identified as having been in close contact with someone who has a positive test must stay at home for 14 days, even if they do not have symptoms, to stop unknowingly spreading the virus.

The service, with 25,000 dedicated contact tracing staff working with Public Health England, will have the capacity to trace the contacts of 10,000 people who test positive for coronavirus per day.

People who are contacted will be given clear information explaining what they must do and how they can access local support if needed.

Council leader Jas Athwal said: “It’s been a long time coming, but we’re hopefully at the stage where we can finally start to get a grip on the spread of this disease.

“If the NHS Test and Trace service contact you, please take their advice and ensure that you stay at home for 14 days as instructed. You must do this even if you don’t have symptoms.”

He urged that people should continue to adhere to social distancing guidelines particularly as lockdown measures are eased.

He said: “This shouldn’t be seen as a green light to undo all the hard work that we’ve put in to keep infection rates down and to protect our NHS.

“The scary reality is that people are still dying from Covid-19, and we need to be mindful of that. The last thing we want is a second spike in cases.”

For further information on NHS Track & Trace visit https://www.gov.uk/guidance/nhs-test-and-trace-how-it-works