Community Collect

Following the Government's announcement, everybody in England is now able to access two Lateral Flow Tests (LFT) per week to use at home. Residents are encouraged to get tested for Covid twice a week.

How to get a Covid test in Stoke-on-Trent

People can access get a twice-weekly tests:

• at a local community testing venue
• through your employer if they are offering testing
• by collecting a home test kit from a collection point
• by ordering a home test kit online
• by collecting a home test kit from selected pharmacies

Community testing 

Anyone without symptoms can also book a regular test at one of Stoke-on-Trent's community testing centres at www.stoke.gov.uk/bookacovid19test. Walk ins are welcome.

Testing at these sites is assisted, which means you will swab yourself under the supervision of a trained operator. 

Pop up testing centres

Our pop up testing centres offer lateral flow tests where people who don't have symptoms of COVID-19 can get a test which gives results in just over 30 minutes. No appointment is needed for these testing centres and anybody who isn't showing COVID-19 symptoms is welcome. You can also pick up home testing kits. Information on the next pop up testing centres will be updated here.

Date: Tuesday, 24 August 2021

Time: 11am - 3pm

Location: Hanley Park by the cafe

Community collect

People will be able to collect tests to use at home from 11 community testing venues. After having a test done on site with a trained member of staff to explain how to do the test, people can then collect 2 boxes of 7 test kits to complete twice-weekly at home. You will not need to book to collect test kits after this but can still get a test at a community testing venue or a pharmacy offering tests. Trained staff will be on hand to show you how to use the kits. The community testing venues offering community collect in Stoke-on-Trent are:

 Anyone aged 18 or over can collect two testing packs which contain seven tests each.

People with symptoms should not attend and instead book a test at www.nhs.uk/coronavirus

Ordering a home test kit

You can order test kit online.

Get a test through your employer 

Your workplace may offer rapid lateral flow testing to you. Contact your employer to find out more.  

Collecting a test from a pharmacy

You can also collect home testing kits from pharmacies across the city. You can find out where you can collect them from via a map on the NHS website. Click here to find out more.

What twice-weekly testing involves

You will be asked to:   

• take a test twice a week (every 3 or 4 days apart)  
• report every result to NHS Test and Trace on the same day you take the test  
• Report your test result online or by calling 119.   

If anyone tests positive or gets coronavirus symptoms, they should tell the school and: self-isolate immediately, get a PCR test to confirm the result and follow the stay at home guidance for households with possible coronavirus infection.  

A negative result means the test did not find signs of coronavirus. But this does not guarantee you do not have coronavirus, so you should keep following all coronavirus advice including regular handwashing and social distancing.