Around one in seven deaths from coronavirus in Cornwall has happened in a care home, according figures released today by the Office of National Statistics (ONS).

Up until April 10, there had been eight coronavirus-related deaths in care homes in the county. (The figures, published today, relate to all deaths that occurred up to April 10 but were registered up to April 18).

The data refers to deaths in care homes where COVID-19 is mentioned on the death certificate.In Cornwall, 45 people have died in hospital and five at home.There have been no deaths at all related to coronavirus in the Isles of Scilly.No deaths have been recorded as taking place in either a hospice or at any other setting.The national picture reflected in the ONS figures is that nearly 20 per cent of coronavirus deaths have occurred outside hospitals including in care homes.Cllr Ian Hudspeth, Chairman of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board said: ’Every death from this virus is a tragedy. We must take every possible step to protect our elderly and most vulnerable and those who work with them from this disease.

’Today’s sad and shocking figures highlight just what a severe challenge we face in care homes and other community settings. Council social care staff and care homes need urgent access to reliable and ongoing supplies of quality PPE, increased rapid and comprehensive testing and greater support with staffing and other equipment, on an equal footing with the NHS.

’Data on all deaths from Covid-19 needs to be published promptly and accurately, so we can have full confidence and transparency in these figures as part of our plan to defeat this deadly virus.

’We are also yet to see the peak of the stress on the social care system, due to the delay between hospital admissions and discharge, which will require the need to start thinking about shifting capacity across from hospitals and into the community to meet a surge in demand.’

ONS reporting by local democracy reporter Daniel Clark