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The number of patients who have died after testing positive for COVID-19 could be nearly 6,000 higher than official government figures state, new data has revealed.

The Office for National Statistics has published a report which claims that up to April 17 there were 21,284 deaths recorded in England where coronavirus was mentioned on the death certificate.

However the daily update released by NHS England on April 17 gave the toll up to that date as 13,917.

As the death figures are continuously updated, the figure for April 17 rose, and officially stands at 15,293.

The ONS report found that nearly 6,000 more people have died, with coronavirus listed among the causes, than the government daily updates reveal. | Getty Images

This still amounts to a discrepancy of 5,991, according to the ONS.

The ONS explanation for this is that the figures revealed by their report include deaths in the community, including in nursing homes, whereas the figures published by NHS England only account for deaths in hospitals.

The figures from the ONS are also based on whether or not the disease was mentioned on the death certificate, rather than whether or not the patient had tested positive for COVID-19.

The latest hospital deaths data published yesterday (Monday 27) show 21,092 people who tested positive for cornavirus had died across the United Kingdom.

According to the NHS England figures, in Sheffield there have been 193 deaths. In Doncaster there have been 74, Rotherham 92 and Barnsley 63.

Seventy two deaths have been recorded among patients at Chesterfield Royal Hospital, and 87 at Sherwood Forest Hospitals in Nottinghamshire.

Coronavirus death toll nearly 6,000 higher than official figures claim, report finds