Testing centres on way

New community testing centres are to open in Forth Valley over the next few weeks to offer rapid testing to local people who do not have any symptoms of Covid-19.

The move is part of national plans to expand community testing across Scotland over the next few months.

A testing centre, which will be based in Polmont Sports Centre, will offer testing to people who live in the Falkirk Council area, including those who live and work in Grangemouth and the surrounding areas.

A mobile testing centre will also visit a number of locations in Stirling and Clackmannanshire on a rotational basis. Further information on the start dates, opening times and booking process will be issued by local councils in the next few weeks when the new facilities become operational.

The centres will provide lateral flow testing, with results available within 45 minutes. If the result is positive this will be followed up with a confirmatory PCR test. A range of national and local support is available to anyone who needs to self-isolate due to a positive result including financial support and food packages. Further advice and information on the support available can be found on NHS Inform and local council websites.

Dr Graham Foster, director of public health at NHS Forth Valley, said:“We know that around one in three people who contract Covid-19 show none of the common symptoms so the introduction of these new testing centres will help identify more cases and stop the virus spreading in our local communities.”

The community testing initiative is a partnership between the Scottish Government, NHS Forth Valley, Falkirk, Clackmannanshire and Stirling councils, both local Health and Social Care Partnerships and military planners. This includes a team of 23 members of the armed forces who will support the planning and implementation of the new Asymptomatic Test Sites (ATS) across ForthValley.