The entire county will see the roll out of enhanced testing for coronavirus which could pave the way for the end of living under the toughest restrictions.

Each of the 12 districts and boroughs in Kent, along with Medway Unitary authorities, have today been given approval to be among the first parts of England to start mass testing as soon as Monday.

They were in a list of 67 areas where community testing programmes can start as part of the Government’s Covid-19 Winter Plan.

More than 1.6 million lateral flow tests - devices that provide a result in minutes - have been sent to detect asymptomatic cases, where people do not show symptoms of the virus.

It is hoped the tests will help drive down transmission.

The Government's aim is that the testing, together with the existing restrictions, will help the county move out of Tier 3.

It is thought one in three people have the virus without symptoms so could be spreading the disease without knowing it.

Therefore, identifying people showing no symptoms will mean finding positive cases more quickly and break chains of transmission, says the Department for Health and Social Care.

Local authorities were invited to bid for the testing programmes and had to show evidence of having plans in place for co-ordinating them.

Such mass testing is already underway in Medway.

Rochester Cathedral was the fourth symptom-free mass test location to open this week as the Towns, along with Swale, continue to have the highest infection rates in the country.

Last week, the testing programme was promised for Thanet and Swale, although initially it was said it would happen "within weeks". A working men's club in Halfway, near Sheerness, was among the locations being lined up to provide the tests.

Today's announcement appears to have fast-forwarded the process, although no details of where and when the asymptomatic tests will be available has been released.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: "Community testing will be very important in helping the areas where levels of the virus are highest to drive down infection rates and ultimately will help areas ease tougher restrictions.

"This is just the start, and we are working quickly to roll out community testing more widely as soon as more local teams are ready. I urge all those living in areas where community testing is offered to come forward and get tested."

Despite question marks over the accuracy of the lateral flow tests, the government says extensive clinical evaluation has been carried out by Public Health England and Oxford University which showed them to be accurate.

Among the first to herald the arrival of widespread community testing was South Thanet MP Craig Mackinlay.

"While we continue to make fantastic progress on the rollout of a vaccine, we cannot afford to become complacent about the threat of coronavirus, which continues to remain a real danger within our communities," he said.

“Community testing is one of the most powerful tools we have to break the chain of transmission and drive down the infection rate in areas like mine where the virus remains prevalent, and I would encourage everyone in my South Thanet constituency to get tested so together we can keep the virus under control."

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