COVID-19 in Cheltenham
How the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded in Cheltenham from February 2020 to December 2023: cases, testing, deaths, hospital admissions and vaccine uptake.
- ⇚ Back to Community & Support
- 2020-02-01 to 2023-12-31
The COVID-19 Pandemic in Cheltenham
The first confirmed case among Cheltenham residents was recorded on 4 March 2020. Less than a week later the Cheltenham Festival went ahead, drawing crowds from across the country less than two weeks before the first national lockdown. Over the next four years the town lived through three national lockdowns, the vaccine rollout and repeated waves of infection, with Cheltenham General Hospital and Gloucestershire Royal Hospital caring for thousands of patients with the virus.
This page records that period from February 2020 to December 2023 in figures: confirmed cases and testing among Cheltenham residents, deaths, hospital admissions and occupied beds across Gloucestershire’s two main hospitals, and the take-up of the seasonal booster vaccines. The worst week for deaths came in April 2020, during the first wave, while hospital admissions peaked in January 2021 and confirmed cases peaked with the Omicron variant at the turn of 2022.
For today’s healthcare services, see GPs and pharmacies and A&E waiting times.
COVID-19 in Cheltenham at a Glance
Confirmed cases in Cheltenham
42,062 busiest week: 1,627Deaths in Cheltenham involving COVID-19
404 busiest week: 37Patients admitted to Gloucestershire hospitals
10,247 busiest week: 188PCR tests of Cheltenham residents
2,574,454 busiest week: 59,275Busiest Weeks
| Measure | Week starting | Figure |
|---|---|---|
| Confirmed cases in Cheltenham | 2021-12-27 | 1,627 |
| PCR tests of Cheltenham residents | 2021-10-18 | 59,275 |
| Share of tests positive (%) | 2020-03-30 | 51.6 |
| Deaths in Cheltenham | 2020-04-13 | 37 |
| Hospital admissions | 2021-01-11 | 188 |
| Occupied hospital beds (average) | 2021-01-04 | 219 |
COVID-19 by Year
| Year | Confirmed cases | PCR tests | Deaths | Hospital admissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2,392 | 482,254 | 194 | 1,224 |
| 2021 | 17,522 | 1,630,662 | 77 | 2,803 |
| 2022 | 20,831 | 431,988 | 76 | 4,601 |
| 2023 | 1,317 | 29,550 | 57 | 1,619 |
Confirmed Cases
New confirmed cases among Cheltenham residents each week. Cases depend on how many people were tested, so the low counts after free testing ended in April 2022 do not mean the virus had gone.
Testing and Positivity
PCR tests of Cheltenham residents each week, and the share of people tested who had a positive result. In the first weeks of the pandemic, tests were mostly limited to people in hospital, so a large share came back positive. After free testing ended in April 2022, so few tests were taken that the share swings widely from week to week.
Hospital Admissions and Beds
Patients with COVID-19 admitted each week to Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Cheltenham General Hospital and Gloucestershire Royal Hospital, and the average number of beds they occupied. Figures start in July 2020.
Deaths
Deaths of Cheltenham residents with COVID-19 mentioned on the death certificate, each week.
Vaccine Uptake
The share of eligible Cheltenham residents vaccinated in each seasonal booster campaign, as at the last figures published for that campaign up to 2023-12-31.
Autumn 2022
| Age | Vaccinated (%) | As at |
|---|---|---|
| 50+ | 75.6 | 2023-03-22 |
| 50-54 | 54.2 | 2023-02-11 |
| 55-59 | 67.5 | 2023-03-02 |
| 60-64 | 73.4 | 2023-03-09 |
| 65-69 | 79.6 | 2023-02-10 |
| 70-74 | 85.7 | 2023-02-16 |
| 75-79 | 88.1 | 2023-02-16 |
| 80+ | 90.8 | 2023-03-22 |
Spring 2023
| Age | Vaccinated (%) | As at |
|---|---|---|
| 75+ | 79.9 | 2023-06-30 |
| 75-79 | 76.7 | 2023-06-30 |
| 80+ | 82.3 | 2023-06-30 |
Autumn 2023
| Age | Vaccinated (%) | As at |
|---|---|---|
| 65+ | 80.1 | 2023-12-31 |
| 65-69 | 69.5 | 2023-12-31 |
| 70-74 | 79.8 | 2023-12-31 |
| 75-79 | 84.0 | 2023-12-31 |
| 80+ | 86.1 | 2023-12-31 |
Timeline
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| 2019-12-01 | The earliest known patient with COVID-19 falls ill in Wuhan, China. |
| 2019-12-31 | Wuhan reports a cluster of pneumonia cases of unknown cause to the World Health Organization. |
| 2020-01-30 | The World Health Organization declares the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. |
| 2020-01-31 | The first two cases in the UK are confirmed, in York. |
| 2020-03-04 | The first confirmed case among Cheltenham residents is recorded. |
| 2020-03-05 | The first death in the UK of a patient with COVID-19 is confirmed. |
| 2020-03-10 | The Cheltenham Festival begins, running for four days with crowds of more than 250,000 across the week. |
| 2020-03-11 | The World Health Organization declares COVID-19 a pandemic. |
| 2020-03-23 | The first national lockdown is announced: people must stay at home except for limited reasons. |
| 2020-06-15 | Non-essential shops reopen in England. |
| 2020-07-04 | Pubs, restaurants and hairdressers reopen in England. |
| 2020-11-05 | The second national lockdown begins in England, lasting until 2 December. |
| 2020-12-08 | The first COVID-19 vaccination in the UK is given, in Coventry. |
| 2021-01-06 | The third national lockdown begins in England. |
| 2021-04-12 | Non-essential shops, gyms, hairdressers and outdoor hospitality reopen in England. |
| 2021-07-19 | Most legal restrictions end in England. |
| 2021-11-27 | The first cases of the Omicron variant are confirmed in the UK. |
| 2022-02-24 | The legal requirement to self-isolate after a positive test ends in England. |
| 2022-04-01 | Free testing ends for most people in England, so far fewer cases are recorded from here on. |
| 2023-05-05 | The World Health Organization declares that COVID-19 is no longer a global health emergency. |
Data from the UK Health Security Agency data dashboard, including deaths from the Office for National Statistics, published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Last updated 8 October 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Does This Page Stop at the End of 2023?
- Most of the local figures stopped being collected or published by then. Free testing ended for most people in April 2022, so confirmed cases fell to a handful a week, and weekly COVID-19 deaths for Cheltenham are published only up to the end of 2023.
- This page is a record of the pandemic in Cheltenham from 2020-02-01 to 2023-12-31. We no longer collect new figures for it, so it will not change unless the published figures for that period are revised.
Why Did Cases Fall So Sharply in 2022?
- Because far fewer people were tested, not because far fewer people caught COVID-19. After free testing ended on 1 April 2022, most people with symptoms stopped taking a test, so far fewer results were reported.
- Hospital admissions are a steadier guide to how COVID-19 rose and fell across the whole period.
Is COVID-19 Still Around?
- Yes. COVID-19 still circulates in waves, but it is now tracked through national surveillance rather than mass testing, so there are no reliable figures for Cheltenham alone.
- For the latest national and regional picture, see the UKHSA data dashboard. For advice about vaccination, speak to your GP or pharmacy.
Which Hospitals Do the Admissions Cover?
- Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Cheltenham General Hospital and Gloucestershire Royal Hospital in Gloucester. Admissions are counted for the trust as a whole, so they include patients from across Gloucestershire, not just Cheltenham.
How Are Deaths Counted?
- Deaths of Cheltenham residents where COVID-19 was mentioned anywhere on the death certificate, from the Office for National Statistics. This includes deaths where COVID-19 contributed but was not the main cause.