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07
Oct 2020
Harrogate to get permanent Covid testing site
A permanent coronavirus testing centre for winter is to be built in Harrogate in the next few weeks.
A mobile testing site at the Dragon Road car park near Asda currently operates in the town, usually for four hours twice a week,
But with the number of infections rising, the same site will be upgraded to host a permanent testing centre over winter.
Advance bookings will still be required.
Victoria Turner, public health consultant at North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, which is a partnership of public agencies, confirmed at a briefing today construction will begin on Thursday next week. It is hoped the site will be open by October 22.
Read more:
- Care home visits in district may be allowed after October
- Harrogate hospital prepares for winter with 100 coronavirus beds
Currently, the Department of Health and Social Care runs mobile testing units in different areas of the county every week.
The new Harrogate site is expected to be similar to the one at the University of York, which opened last week and operates seven days a week.
What will happen to the facility beyond winter remains unclear,
Richard Webb, director of adult social care at North Yorkshire County Council, said the authority had worked hard to retain the testing capacity it has and to lobby the government for further sites.
He told the resilience forum briefing:
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