Care home resident deaths involving Covid-19 in England and Wales fell by 34 per cent on the previous week, according to the latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) data.
In the week ending 26 February (week 8), 636 care home resident deaths were recorded where Covid was mentioned on the death certificate.
That compares with 969 care home resident Covid-related deaths in the week ending 19 February and 1,491 the week before that.
The data refers to all deaths where either the death occurred in a care home or occurred elsewhere - such as hospitals - but the place of residence of the deceased was recorded as a care home.
The ONS data shows 2,693 care home residents died from all causes in week eight – down from 3,018 a week earlier - meaning Covid was a factor in 24 per cent of total deaths.
Figures published by the ONS also show a total of 40,250 care home resident deaths involving Covid-19 in England and Wales between the week ending 20 March (week 12, 2020) and the week ending 26 February.
