The government is extending whole care home testing to all adult care homes after meeting the target of offering a test to every care home for over-65s and those with dementia in England by 6th June.

Since the launch of whole care home testing, the government has provided 1,071,103 test kits to 8,984 care homes, and it is now able to send out over 50,000 test kits a day.

To continue providing support for the sector and to tackle the further spread of the virus in social care the government has set up a new taskforce, with representatives from across government and the care sector.

The new taskforce will help oversee the implementation of the government’s social care action plan and care home support package to help end transmission in the community and advise on a plan to support the sector through the next year.

Health and Social Care Secretary, Matt Hancock said: “From today all remaining adult care homes in England will be able to order the whole care home testing service for residents and staff. This service will benefit residents and staff in over 6,000 more care homes.

“It will mean that right across the care home sector everyone will have the certainty and confidence of a high quality coronavirus test, whether symptomatic or not, certainty about whether or not they’re carrying the virus and confidence that they are doing the right thing both to protect themselves and others.”