England’s Covid R rate has dropped slightly and is no longer above 1, scientists advising the government have said.

Official figures published on Friday suggest the nationwide R rate is between 0.8 and 1.0. Last week it was between 0.8 and 1.1. 

R measures the number of people, on average, that each sick person will infect.

If R is greater than 1 the epidemic is generally seen to be growing; if R is less than 1 the epidemic is shrinking.

Here’s what the R rate is in each region of England

In England, the R rate is between 0.8 and 1.0 (down from 0.8 to 1.1)

East of England – 0.8 to 1.1 (unchanged)

London – 0.8 to 1.1 (unchanged)

Midlands – 0.8 to 1.0 (up from 0.7 to 1.0)

North-east and Yorkshire – 0.7 to 1.0 (down from 0.8 to 1.0) 

North-west – 0.7 to 1.0 ( up from 0.7 to 0.9)

South-east – 0.8 to 1.1 (up from 0.8 to 1.0) 

South west – 0.8 to 1.1 (down from 0.8 to 1.2) 

The estimates are provided by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) and the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC).

Sage and DHSC said “particular care should be taken” when interpreting the regional estimates in England.

“They are based on low numbers of cases or deaths and/or dominated by clustered outbreaks. They should not be treated as robust enough to inform policy decisions alone,” they said.

Here’s what the R rate is in the devolved nations

In Scotland the latest figures estimate the R rate is between 0.8 and 1.0, unchanged from last week.

In Wales it is estimated to be between 0.7 and 1.0.

And in Northern Ireland, the latest figures suggest R is between 0.7 and 1.05, which is unchanged from last week.

Previously a UK-wide figure for R was published, but this has now been been dropped. 

Sage said that, given the “increasingly localised approach” to managing the epidemic, “UK-level estimates are less meaningful than previously and may not accurately reflect the current picture”.