Covid patients being cared for at the trust in charge of The Royal Oldham Hospital are on the rise again as cases continue to climb.

It now appears the recent increase in cases in the region, of which the majority are the more easily spread Indian variant - now known as the Delta variant - could be translating into a rise in hospital cases.

Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust was caring for 21 coronavirus patients in hospital as of Tuesday, figures show.

NHS England data reveals the number of people being treated in hospital for Covid-19 by 8am on June 8 was up from 17 on the same day the previous week, which had been a drop from 19 two weeks ago.

The number of beds at Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust occupied by people who tested positive for Covid-19 increased by 17 per cent in the last four weeks – 28 days ago, there were 18.

However, patient numbers are still far below previous peaks in infection, with the trust treating more than 400 Covid-positive patients at the height of the November outbreak.

Across England there were 879 people in hospital with Covid as of June 8, with 140 of them in mechanical ventilation beds.

The number of Covid-19 patients hospitalised nationally has decreased by five per cent in the last four weeks, while the number on mechanical ventilators has increased by 11 per cent.

The figures also show that six new Covid patients were admitted to hospital in Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust in the week to June 6. This was the same number as in the previous seven days, which in turn increased from two the week prior.