Harrogate to get permanent covid-19 test centre

It's going to be created at the Dragon Road car park

The test centre is in response to a recent rise in coronavirus infections
Author: Local democracy reporter Jacob WebsterPublished 8th Oct 2020

A permanent coronavirus testing centre for winter will be built in Harrogate.

The testing site at the Dragon Road car park is being built in response to the recent rise in virus infections.

Victoria Turner, public health consultant at North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, told a weekly briefing that construction of the site will begin on 15 October before it opens a week later.

A mobile testing facility has been operating from the car park but the site is being upgraded as testing efforts are ramped up.

Richard Webb, director of adult social care at North Yorkshire County Council, said the county had retained good testing capacity and that it will lobby the government for more.

He told the briefing: “We have been fortunate to retain our testing capacity when other parts of Yorkshire have seen it stretched.”

The Department of Health and Social Care is the government body that is responsible for testing and runs several mobile testing units across the county.