Wards in Watford are seeing a drop in coronavirus cases as the borough’s infection rate continues to fall.

Data released on the government’s Covid dashboard shows infections have been dropping in Watford during England’s third national lockdown, with wards across the town recording a week-on-week fall in cases.

And the infection rate for the borough is nowhere near as high as what it was during the Christmas and New Year period and is still dropping, suggesting residents have done what was needed to help bring the spread of the virus under control.

But while these are encouraging signs, case numbers across Hertfordshire are still higher than public health officials would like them to be and hospitals remain very busy.

What is the current situation in Watford?

The Christmas period saw Watford record some of the highest infection rates in the whole of England, with it having surpassed 1,000 cases per 100,000 population before lockdown was enforced at the start of January.

The rate of infection in the town has seen a big drop since then, with latest data showing that Watford recorded a rate of 410 cases per 100,000 population in the seven days to January 24.

This is thanks to a drop of cases in wards across Watford, particularly in northern parts of the town and the town centre.

Cases across wards in the town are lower than what they were during the Christmas and New Year period, with the latest data showing that 11 saw a further decrease of infections in the week to January 23 compared to the previous seven days.

Watford Central and Stanborough saw a drop of more than 30 cases, while six other wards recorded a drop of over 20 cases in the same period.

Below you can see the latest coronavirus data for Watford:

Figures also show that cases are on the way down across Hertfordshire, with each district recording a week-on-week drop in infection rates.

The rates in each of the county's 10 districts are much lower now than what they were over the Christmas and New Year period.

Speaking in a media briefing last Friday, Hertfordshire public health director Jim McManus said he "feared" the county would be in a "worse position" than it currently is now because of the new variant as well as Christmas and New Year, and he seemed pleasantly surprised by how much rates had fallen.

But he warned the county "is not out of the woods yet" with case rates still too high, as he urged residents to continue following the rules while England remains in lockdown.

He said: "We are in a better position than we had feared and (to say) we are grateful is an understatement to our residents.

"If you look at the case rate, clearly lockdown has had an impact but lockdowns generally work if people adhere to the measures, so our residents have clearly done something.

"In that second week of January, the drop started to accelerate, so I think we are in a better position than I had feared. But that is not cause for complacency."