Health bosses say they are preparing for an 'inevitable' second wave of coronavirus - as people in Bolton and across the country enjoyed a weekend of more relaxed lockdown measures.

Bolton NHS Foundation Trust chief operating officer Andy Ennis warned at the start of this month more waves of COVID-19 are coming.

This week, he said: "Whilst we are currently experiencing reduced demand on our services, we continue to look at how we can adapt these services to ensure that we can continue to respond effectively to the inevitable further waves of covid-19.

“We also need to be able to continue to respond to emergencies and an increased demand for our services in the community."

He added" Our message remains, that if you have a serious or life threatening medical condition, we are here for you.

" However we must remind the public that they should contact their GP for treatment for minor conditions, not visit the hospital, in order to ensure that we can meet the anticipated continued demands of covid-19."

The number of new daily confirmed cases in the country has been falling since a peak in April.

On Friday, the government said the number of people in hospital with coronavirus had fallen to just over 10,700, down from more than 12,000 on the same day last week.

Last week, the Government relaxed the lockdown measures.

Now two people from different households in England can meet in outdoor settings, such as parks, as long as they stay more than two metres apart; people can spend more time outdoors for leisure purposes including sunbathing.

The Government says those who can't work from home should travel to their work if it is open. However, they should avoid public transport for social distancing reasons.

Tennis, angling and golf can be enjoyed

Su Long, chief officer of Bolton Clincial Commissioning Group, said: "The positive thing is our job is to respond.

" I think it’s so positive that we now have daily situation reports and if we do see any increase we would be able to respond."

For urgent medical help that is not related to coronavirus, use the NHS 111 service.

For life-threatening emergencies, call 999 and ask for an ambulance.

If you have symptoms of coronavirus use the 111 coronavirus service. For more information visit the NHS website or your GP surgery’s website.