CORONAVIRUS has now broken out in about 40 per cent of Brighton and Hove care homes.

Government data shows there have now been 38 homes in the city which have notified an outbreak of Covid-19 out of a total of 93.

The council ranks 80 out of 150 local authorities when comparing the percentage of care homes infected.

The peak number of notifications happened in the week beginning March 16. An outbreak in Oaklands Nursing Home in Dyke Road Avenue, Hove, is understood to have started on March 12.

The Argus reported on March 23 that the home had been pleading for “proper protective equipment” as the outbreak entered its 11th day.

One of the first residents to show symptoms, Giuseppe Casciello, died on March 30.

Peter Kyle, MP for Hove and Portslade, confronted Boris Johnson about the issue at the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions in Parliament.

Mr Johnson responded that care homes could expect personal protective equipment “by the end of this week”.

On May 5, a care home in Brighton and Hove praised the council for its centralised stock of PPE.

The Argus reported in March how agency staff at Oaklands Nursing Home had been working at other homes across the city amid fears they could be spreading the virus.

At the nation’s press conference, Argus reporter Jody Doherty-Cove questioned Health Secretary Matt Hancock about whether the Government had considered limiting agency workers to one or two homes and he said he was following reports on the city’s care homes closely..

In April, a report by Public Health England, leaked to The Guardian, suggested workers brought in to cover staff may have spread the virus between homes.

However, the council’s health boss Rob Persey said he is “not aware” that this is happening in Brighton and Hove.