One new coronavirus death at West Hertfordshire Hospitals Trust

NHS England figures show 327 people had died in hospital at West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust as of 5pm on Thursday (May 14).

That was an increase of one compared to Wednesday, when there were 326.

A week ago, there had been 321 deaths recorded.

The victims were among 2,795 deaths recorded across the East of England.

Of 23 trusts within the region, West Hertfordshire Hospitals trust has the highest death toll.

Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death.

This means some of the deaths that were first recorded in the last 24 hours may actually have taken place days earlier.

NHS England guidance states: "Confirmation of Covid-19 diagnosis, death notification and reporting in central figures can take up to several days and the hospitals providing the data are under significant operational pressure."

Only deaths that occur in hospitals where the patient has tested positive for Covid-19 are recorded, with deaths in the community excluded, such as those in care homes.

Across England, the death toll hit 24,346 on Thursday, up from 24,160 on Wednesday.

Separate figures from the Department of Health and Social Care show 233,151 people had tested positive for Covid-19 across the UK as of 9am on Thursday, up from 229,705.