With the Government COVID-19 restrictions lifting in under a week, Bucks Council are still encouraging residents to get tested for Coronavirus.
But with so much information and different messages being given all the time, it is understandable that some people might confused about what type of test they need to take and where they can get it.
So the council have made a simple list with all the relevant information on testing for COVID-19:
- Anyone with Covid symptoms should stay at home and self-isolate, along with anyone who they live with. You should take a free PCR test which will confirm whether or not you have the virus. PCR tests can be ordered by phone or online and will be delivered direct to you. Alternatively you can visit a PCR testing site in Aylesbury or High Wycombe.
- If you have been contacted by NHS Test & Trace as a close contact of someone who has tested positive, you should stay at home and self-isolate for 10 days in line with national guidance, (however in this situation, the people you live with do not have to self-isolate unless they are instructed otherwise). You can take a PCR test but a negative result does not remove the need to self-isolate. Financial support of up to £500 is available to those who have to isolate and are unable to work from home. For more information visit: https://www.gov.uk/test-and-trace-support-payment
- For people with NO symptoms (also known as being asymptomatic), rapid tests (Lateral Flow Tests) are freely available for everyone to take regular self-tests. The easiest way to do a rapid test is with a home-testing kit. These can be picked up from pharmacies or online. Buckinghamshire also has two fixed rapid testing sites in Aylesbury and High Wycombe. No appointment is necessary, you can just turn up to take a test and collect home test kits.
Remember, even if you have been vaccinated, you can still catch and spread Covid-19, sometimes without even knowing it.