Two key statistics which mean Sheffield could be moved to Tier 2 restrictions

The Government is due to review which areas are subject to the toughest Covid-19 rules by December 16, with South Yorkshire potentially being moved down into Tier 2.

Should that happen, it would allow cafes, restaurants and pubs serving substantial meals to reopen, while people would be able to meet in groups of up to six in private gardens as well as other outdoor spaces.

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The final decision rests with Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the criteria used to determine which areas fall into which tier will remain the same.

They are the total infection rate, the infection rate among over-60s, the rate at which new cases are rising or falling, the percentage of tests coming back positive and the pressure on the NHS locally.

In Sheffield, the latest signs are promising.

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The weekly infection rate stands at 165.2 new cases per 100,000 people, which is down from 230.1 the week before and no longer among the 100 highest figures in England.

Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, meanwhile, today said it had seen a ‘continued decline in the number of Covid-19 patients we are caring for and admitting’, with 215 coronavirus patients in total and 15 in intensive care.

With the number of new cases also falling elsewhere in South Yorkshire, where the weekly infection rate has dropped below 200 in Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham, there are hopes of a move to Tier 2.

But Sheffield’s director of public health, Greg Fell, has sounded a note of caution, advising that while rates are falling they remain high.

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