Rutland has now gone three weeks without a Covid-linked deaths in the county.

England's smallest county also recorded just one case today, giving a grand total of 1644 since the start of the pandemic. This is equivalent to about one case for every 25 residents.

The number of cases recorded over the past 7 days however increased from 11 to 12- similar to a low last reached just over three weeks ago before a recent spike in cases.

The 7-day infection rate is now 30.1 cases per 100,000, which almost matches the England average of 28.2 cases per 100,000.

The numbers of deaths of people dying within 28 days of testing positive with the virus again remained at 61, which is equivalent to about one for every 700 residents. This compares to an England average of about one-in-500.

Meanwhile, in Lincolnshire, nine Covid-19 cases were recorded in South Kesteven today, causing a small increase in its 7-day infection rate.

The number compares with 14 cases last Wednesday, but how the figures are revised and calculated meant the 7-date still increased.

In the week to today, South Kesteven has recorded 72 cases, compared with 65 in the week to yesterday and 108 in the week to last Wednesday.

This gives a 7-day rate of 50.6, which is well above the England average of 28.2.

In total, 7465 cases have been recorded in South Kesteven since the start of the pandemic. This is about one-in-20 of the population.

No deaths were recorded today, but yesterday the district record its first Covid-linked fatality in more than 3 weeks.

The total of 266 since the start of the pandemic means that around one-in-600 South Kesteven residents will have died withing 28 days of a positive test for the virus.

Overall, there have been 41 new coronavirus cases and no COVID-related deaths in Greater Lincolnshire on Wednesday — down from 67 cases and two deaths last Wednesday.

The government's COVID-19 dashboard recorded 21 new cases in Lincolnshire, 11 in North East Lincolnshire and nine in North Lincolnshire.

On Wednesday, -2 deaths were registered in Lincolnshire and none in Northern Lincolnshire. These figures include deaths both in and out of hospitals, as well as residents in hospitals outside the county. Fluctuations in data can occur for a variety of reasons including corrected data, misdiagnoses or wrong addresses.

On Wednesday, national cases increased by 2,491 to 4,378,305, while deaths rose by 38 to 127,161.

In national news, about of half of the UK population in private households is estimated to have COVID-19 antibodies, meaning they have been vaccinated or were previously infected.

A survey by the Office for National Statistics suggests that an estimated 54.9% of people in England had the antibodies in the week ending March 28. This figure is largely unchanged from the previous two weeks, when the last survey was done.

A major UK trial looking at whether COVID vaccines can be mixed with different types of jabs used for first and second doses is being expanded.

Combining vaccines might give broader, longer-lasting immunity against the virus and new variants of it, and offer more flexibility to vaccine rollout.