First coronavirus mobile testing site for Marlow and another for Aylesbury

Coronavirus mobile testing site. Photo credit Stewart Turkington for Bracknell Forest Council.

A mobile coronavirus testing site will be making its first visit to Marlow next week, as efforts to stop the spread of COVID continue across Buckinghamshire.

The site will be up and running for up to two days from Wednesday, 5 August.

Another mobile testing site will also be operating in Aylesbury from this Saturday, 1 August, for up to three days.

Marlow will be the fifth area in Buckinghamshire to host a mobile testing site, following their repeated visits to Amersham, Aylesbury, Buckingham and High Wycombe.

These are in addition to other local and regional coronavirus testing sites, which are still available for residents in Buckinghamshire to use.

Anyone with coronavirus symptoms (a high temperature; a new, continuous cough; a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste) is currently eligible to be tested. Also, anyone told to have a test before going, for example, to hospital for surgery is eligible, and you can arrange a test for someone else in your household with symptoms.

Tests at mobile sites should be booked first and are not available on a ‘drop-in’ basis at this time. Further details of the testing sites will be provided to people when they book their test.

To arrange a test, go to www.gov.uk/coronavirus and click on the appropriate link for you within the ‘testing’ section of information. It is also possible to now order a home testing kit if you cannot get to a testing site.

If the mobile testing sites are fully booked then you will be offered testing at the next-closest location.

A new ‘hybrid’ testing centre is also now running in Slough, in Montem Car Park, Montem Lane. This is open for both booked and drop-in visits. It is open to Bucks residents and visitors can attend on both car and on foot. People can also be tested – at this Slough site only – if they suspect they have been exposed to the coronavirus but are not displaying symptoms.

Gareth Williams, Cabinet Member for Public Health and Community Engagement at Buckinghamshire Council, said: “It’s great to see that another mobile testing site is coming to a new part of Buckinghamshire, making it even easier for residents in and around the Marlow area to access this important service

“As restrictions continue to ease, it is vital that we all remain vigilant to help stop the spread of coronavirus and testing is a key way of doing this. If you think you need a test, please do book a slot.”

Dr Raj Bajwa, GP and Chair of NHS Buckinghamshire Clinical Commissioning Group, said: “Testing is essential to help keep NHS services running smoothly during this outbreak, and to help vulnerable people stay as safe as possible from coronavirus infection. These mobile sites offer a great boost to our testing capabilities in Buckinghamshire, so we hope they will be well-used by those that need them.”