An additional drive-through coronavirus testing facility is to open at Ebbsfleet International in Kent.
Part of the Government’s UK-wide drive to increase testing for thousands more NHS and other key workers, the site will complement the existing staff and key worker testing facilities set up by the Kent and Medway NHS at hospitals across the county.
The site is part of a rapidly expanding network of testing sites being set up around the UK, and will operate on an appointment-only basis for NHS staff and other key workers. The facility will be piloted for its first few days of operation.
Wilf Williams, Accountable Officer for NHS Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group, said:
"Our hospital trusts across Kent and Medway have worked at an incredible pace over the last few weeks to mobilise testing for staff across health, care and other frontline services.
"This new centre significantly expands our testing capacity, in addition to that of the testing centres in all of our hospitals in Kent and Medway, and will help get key health and care workers who are self-isolating back to work as quickly as possible.
"Our planned ‘whole system’ response, using this important new facility, will help keep our essential services staffed and support our communities as we progress through the Coronavirus epidemic."
Andrew Scott-Clark, Director of Public Health for Kent County Council, speaking on behalf of the Kent Resilience Forum, said:
"This is a significant step in strengthening our response to Coronavirus and will enable even more key workers in Kent and Medway to get tested and back to work. We will be working with our partners to ensure our key workers – working across a wide range of important industries that are essential for our communities – are able to get the testing they need.
"This will ensure they are able to work when they are well, keep themselves and their colleagues safe, and continue to keep our communities supported with the services and goods they need."
This follows the launch of the Government’s partnership with universities, research institutes and companies to begin rollout of the network of new labs and field testing sites across the UK, with 29 regional testing sites opened to date.
This network will provide thousands more PCR swab tests - which are used to identify if you have the virus - for critical key workers, starting with NHS front-line staff. This means those who test negative for coronavirus can return to work as soon as possible, and those who test positive are able to recover.
Health Minister Lord Bethell said:
"The Government is rapidly scaling up the national effort to boost testing capacity for coronavirus to protect the vulnerable, support our NHS, and ultimately save lives.
"This new service will help end the uncertainty of whether NHS and social care staff and other key workers need to stay at home, meaning those who test negative will be able to return to work.
"This is a national effort and we are proud to be working with a number of partners to turn this ambition into a reality and roll out additional capacity to where it is needed."
Professor John Newton, National Coordinator for the UK Coronavirus Testing Strategy, said:
"New testing sites such as this one are a key pillar of our 5-pillar plan to scale up testing, and are critical in supporting NHS staff and other frontline workers who are isolating at home to return safely to work if the test is negative."
"This is a brilliant example of industries and businesses turning their resources to creating and rolling out mass testing at scale, which will help to deliver on our aim of carrying out 100,000 tests a day across the UK by the end of the month."
The testing centre is being operated in partnership with G4S. Those tested will receive their results within a few days.
Gordon Brockington, G4S Director said:
"We are proud of our important role in setting up and managing this Covid-19 testing site, and other similar sites across the UK. It has been inspiring to see the enthusiasm of our employees to step up and support the government, our health services and the public during this crisis."
The Government is also urgently working on setting up a home-testing service for critical key workers, supported by Amazon's logistics network and other commercial partners.
The Government’s list of occupations that are defined as key workers is available here.