Further warnings over 'worrying' rise in coronavirus cases as 14 more confirmed in Harrogate

Latest figures published by Public Health England show that the district has now had a total of 850 confirmed cases, compared with 836 on Thursday.

And it comes as the district's virus infection rate has increased threefold from the weeks 31 August to 7 September.

It jumped from 12.4 cases per 100,000 people to 39.2.

Health officials have described the rises as "worrying" and are calling on residents to be extra vigilant to avoid more lockdown measures.

Richard Flinton, chair of the North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, said: “We are not saying there should be lockdowns or that businesses should close, but we do need to be at a heightened level of awareness and take strong precautions as we go about our daily lives.

“If we all do that, we can hope to start to see a tailing off in the escalating figures we have at the moment."

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Like the rest of the country, North Yorkshire has seen a significant rise in cases in the last week, particularly among young people.

There have been increases across the county, but areas of particular concern are Harrogate, Selby and Scarborough.

The last seven days saw 146 new cases in North Yorkshire, including 45 in the Harrogate district, 32 in Scarborough borough and 43 in Selby district.

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On Monday, new coronavirus rules banning social gatherings of more than six people will come into force.

But North Yorkshire Police chief inspector Charlotte Bloxham said people should not wait until then and start following the rules "straight away".

“It’s vital that we react quickly to this advice and do everything we can to prevent the spread of the virus, as we all know how dangerous and devastating Covid-19 can be," she said.

"While enforcement powers will start from Monday, we would encourage everyone to implement the ‘rule of six’ straight away and we would particularly encourage those in the most affected age groups to consider the responsibility they carry when they do socialise.

"So please ensure you maintain the two-metre distance and wear a face covering when needed."

By Jacob Webster, Local Democracy Reporter