First case of Coronavirus Omicron variant found in West Berkshire

There has now been one confirmed case of the new Omicron variant of coronavirus in West Berkshire.

The news was given at this week's West Berkshire Council Local Outbreak Engagement Board meeting.

It was also reported that the number of Covid-19 cases in the district are still high, particularly among young people.

In the past seven days, the number of coronavirus cases in people aged between five and nine years old was 1,921 per 100,000 people.

This is the highest age group for young people, compared to 1,327 people aged 10 to 14 years and 329 people aged 15 to 19 years.

There have been a total of 860 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the district in the past seven days.

Following the spike in confirmed cases in West Berkshire in October, the rate is however now reducing and is less than the South East average, but it is still not yet as low as the national figures.

The meeting was told that it has been reported that the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) guidance now states that booster eligibility, from November 29, includes all adults over the age of 18.

Priority for boosters has been offered to older adults in at-risk groups.

Additionally, those who are severely immunosuppressed will be offered their booster three months after their third primary dose, the meeting heard.

Children and young people between the ages of 12 and 15 years will be offered their second dose of Pfizer vaccine at a minimum of 12 weeks from the first does.

West Berkshire Council said there was still a lot that is unknown about the Omicron variant but that there is a strong indication that this new variant is more transmissible.

Those with coronavirus or those who have come in contact with someone with Omicron will be required to isolate for 10 days, irrespective of their vaccination status.

There are also concerns surrounding the number of mutations and the potential impact that this variant might have on evading both natural and vaccine induced immunity, the meeting was told.

It has been indicated that the window between being infected and becoming infectious is shorter than Delta, however the district council said that we are not yet seeing large numbers of hospitalisations and deaths, though this is being said at an early stage of the variant.

Despite West Berkshire seeing just one case of the new variant, there have now been 261 cases recorded in England as a whole.

It was also noted at the meeting that when the Delta variant was first identified, there was low Covid-19 incidence due to the fact that people were coming out of lockdown and it was summer.

However this variant has come about in winter which has led to a higher incidence, although there is an uptake of the vaccine.

Initial immunity studies suggest that modest levels of neutralising antibodies may protect people from severe forms of Covid-19 but taking the vaccine is still important, it was said.

The council said that rapid measures are being put in place and that face coverings must be worn in shops and on public transport.

There will signs in shops instructing people to wear masks, rather than leaving it as an option, and enforcement will be a matter dealt with by the police or certain transport operators.