ALMOST a month ago, schools in Trafford and across England opened with a number of last year's coronavirus restrictions lifted.

Children were allowed to fill classrooms for in-person learning with no need for masks or social distancing and no need to isolate unless someone tests positive for coronavirus themselves.

However, on Friday, The Messenger reported Trafford's children are now advised to avoid school if a household member tests positive for coronavirus due to a rise in cases in the borough.

But how high are cases in Trafford at the moment, and how much have cases changed since schools opened almost a month ago?*

READ MORE: Covid: Trafford's schoolchildren to 'stay at home' if household members test positive.

In the last week before the borough's schools opened, Trafford's overall case rate stood at 365 per 100,000 people.

The area with the highest individual case rate – 515 per 100,000 people – was in Firswood.

Three weeks later, in the week up to September 25, Trafford's overall case rate moved to 440 per 100,000 people.

The area with the highest individual case rate – at 850 per 100,000 people – moved to Hale.

However, the rise was not a linear one, given Trafford's overall case rate dropped down to 315 in the first week after schools opened.

This means cases went up almost 40 per cent in a fortnight, with the overall case rate of 440 a lot higher than the UK average of 355.

As elsewhere in the UK, a significant rise in cases has not led to a significant rises in deaths.

This is likely to be due to the vaccination programme, with more than three quarters of people over the age of 16 double vaccinated.

*All case rates are to the nearest five.