Permanent local COVID-19 testing sites open in Northallerton and Selby
North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum has worked with the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) to secure more locations for walk-in testing sites, which are operated on behalf of the DHSC by Serco and Sodexo.
New sites opened in Northallerton and Selby at the weekend, to be followed shortly by another in Skipton. These join existing sites in Harrogate and Scarborough and supplement the mobile testing units that are regularly deployed around the county.
The Northallerton testing site is outside The Forum on Bullamoor Road, DL6 1LP. The Selby site is in Portholme Crescent car park, YO8 4QH.
These sites will greatly increase capacity for testing in North Yorkshire. They are indoors and allow walk-in appointments. People do not need to arrive in a vehicle, unlike drive-through mobile testing units where testing is inside a vehicle. The local testing sites offer COVID-19 testing from 8am to 8pm, seven days a week. Appointments must be booked in advance. Book a test here or by calling 119.
Local testing sites take bookings from within a radius of 10 miles. Mobile testing units will continue to run alongside these with a range of 75 miles.
‘More control over the spread of the virus’
Richard Flinton, chair of North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, said: “These additional permanent testing sites further expand North Yorkshire’s testing capabilities.
“The greater testing capacity enables us to exert more control over the spread of this virus and to make the best use of resources by releasing mobile testing units to be deployed to the places that need them most.
“The new local testing sites allow those without a vehicle to be tested quickly, giving them more choice and being more accessible to all residents.
“With the onset of winter, the indoor sites also offer staff a warm, dry place in which to carry out tests.”
People are urged to self-isolate from the onset of COVID-19 symptoms or from when instructed to do so by the NHS test and trace service and to continue to self-isolate while waiting for a test result. Details of support for residents in self-isolation can be found on online. Get more information on testing and coronavirus
