Dozens of people have been tested and hundreds of free test kits given out from the council's new mobile Covid-19 testing van, which started touring the district last week.

The bright green van is visiting high streets, supermarkets and community centres across Bath and North East Somerset offering supervised tests or the opportunity to collect lateral flow tests to take home.

The van will be out until the end of September helping to pick up positive Covid-19 cases and reduce the spread of coronavirus.

Around one in three people with the virus do not have symptoms and can spread it without knowing it – so getting tested is the only way to know if you have the virus. And people can still carry the virus, even if they've had both their jabs.

Councillor Dine Romero, cabinet member for Children and Young People, Communities and Culture at Bath & North East Somerset Council, said:

"It's pleasing to see our new van out and about, providing people with tests – and giving advice and information about the Covid-19 and the vaccines. It's important that people continue to test twice a week. They can now do this at home, at our Burton Street site or at our new testing van. If you haven't had a test before come on down to the van where our experienced team are on hand to help."

The van's locations, dates and times are as follows (times are 9am-5pm unless otherwise stated):

Thursday 19 August

Pennyquick Park, Bath (12pm-3pm)

Friday 20 August

Sladebrook Church, Englishcombe Lane, Bath (2pm-5pm)

Morrison's, London Road, Bath

Royal Victoria Park, Bath

Sladebrook Church, Englishcombe Lane, Bath

Radstock Working Men's Club

Wednesday 25 August

Thursday 26 August

Entry Hill, Bath (12pm-5pm)

Morrison's, London Road, Bath

South Road car park, Midsomer Norton

Guildhall Car Park, Bath

People won't need to book to take a test. Trained outreach workers will be aboard the van, so people can also turn up and take a test, as well as asking any questions they have about testing, support to self-isolate, vaccination or other COVID-19 queries.

As well as the van, the council also runs a testing site in a shop on Burton Street in Bath city centre.

The locations of the mobile testing van will be published in advance every week on our website: https://beta.bathnes.gov.uk/coronavirus-covid-19-latest-information-and-advice/rapid-lateral-flow-testing-everyone

You can also find out more about testing, where to pick up your free lateral flow test kits (https://maps.test-and-trace.nhs.uk/) or how to order test kits to be delivered to your home (https://www.gov.uk/order-coronavirus-rapid-lateral-flow-tests).