New drive through Covid testing facility opens in Aylesbury

Aylesbury Vale Parkway Station is now fully operational as a drive through coronavirus testing site.

Local residents suffering with symptoms can book a test now online here or by calling 119.

The main symptoms remain: a high temperature, a new continuous cough, or a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste.

The facility will be open seven days a week.

The site is part of the largest network of diagnostic testing facilities created in British history which has the capacity to process more than 700,000 tests a day and includes more than 800 sites across the UK, including 86 drive-through sites, 467 walk-through sites, six Lighthouse laboratories, home testing and satellite kits, and a large number of mobile units.

Anyone testing positive for the virus in England will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace to help them trace their contacts. This will help to identify who they may have been in close contact with, protecting others from further transmission.

Close contacts of those testing positive will also hear from NHS Test and Trace, asking them to stay at home for ten days to prevent them from unknowingly spreading the virus. They will be advised to also book a test if they develop symptoms.

Health Minister, Lord Bethell, said: "To respond to the coronavirus, we have built a major testing and tracing system from scratch. We are constantly working to expand and improve it with new technologies and innovations so everyone with symptoms can get a test. “New drive-in sites like this one makes it even easier to get a test no matter where you live.

"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 and stop the spread of the virus.”