Figures published this week have revealed the devastation Covid-19 has reaped on some communities in Greater Manchester.
An Office for National Statistics (ONS) report has broken down all of the fatalities seen across 7,200 neighbourhoods in England and Wales since the start of the pandemic.
Some of the figures for our region make for grim reading.
READ MORE:
Greater Manchester has suffered consistently high infection and mortality rates throughout the entirety of the pandemic, with areas of high deprivation and ageing populations proving significantly worse off.
But in a tale of two cities, one local area in the conurbation recorded zero fatalities from Covid-19 between March 2020 and April 2021.
The ward of Deansgate in Manchester City Centre is just one of 14 local areas in England and Wales where nobody has died after 28 days of testing positive for the virus.
Chadderton Central in Oldham and Castleton and Rochdale have not fared as well.
These are the two neighbourhoods in our region with the highest number of Covid-19 fatalities - both recording 50 deaths between March 2020 and April 2021.
The ONS report looked at the number of excess deaths in every local area - the amount of deaths above the five-year average, as well as the number of Covid-19 related fatalities.
Overall, the North West, London and North East had the highest COVID-19 mortality rates in 2020.
There were around 200 neighbourhoods where the number of deaths was at least double what would normally have been expected between March and July 2020.
These included Crabtree and Fir Vale in Sheffield, which had the largest excess, with 123 deaths between March and July 2020, 77 more than the average of 46, an excess of 167%.
According to the report, in the summer of 2020 areas in the North West including Tameside and Blackburn with Darwen, saw higher than normal mortality rates.
By November 2020, mortality rates were highest in Rochdale and Blaenau Gwent in Wales.
Use your postcode to see the number of excess deaths each month where you live
As well as Deansgate, other areas which registered no deaths with Covid-19 as the main cause between March 2020 and April 2021 included Bristol City Centre, Leeds City Centre and Torpoint in Cornwall.
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, local politicians have reacted to the report.
Councillor for Deansgate, Joan Davies, said a relatively young population, and the occupations of the people who live in the ward are likely behind the low death rate.
"We have got a relatively low age profile here - there are a number of older people living in the city centre but they are smaller in comparison to the rest," she said.
"I think we also have a very high vaccination rate. A lot of the elderly people who live here have been following the advice and have had their coronavirus vaccine.
"Fortunately, a lot of our residents who are in employment are able to work from home.
"Most of the jobs which carry a higher risk of contracting Covid-19 are mostly outside of the city centre."
This is the case for neighbourhoods like Chadderton Central and Castleton, where many of the population work in manual or service jobs that could not be done from home.
Higher Broughton in Salford, Hindley West and Leigh East and Higher Folds in Wigan also registered a high number of deaths between March 2020 and April 2021, with 49, 42 and 46 fatalities respectively.
Previous data collated by the ONS has revealed that there have been higher death rates among people with jobs with regular exposure to Covid-19.
Men who worked in elementary occupations - like cleaning, caretaking and labouring - or caring, leisure and other service occupations had the highest rates of death involving Covid-19, with 66.3 and 64.1 deaths per 100,000 respectively.
In women, process, plant and machine operatives and caring, leisure and other service occupations had the highest rates of death with 33.7 and 27.3 deaths respectively.
MP for Oldham West and Royton, Jim McMahon, said the figures were a 'further reminder of the devastating impact Covid-19 has had on our communities.'
"My thoughts are with the friends and families of the 742 Oldhamers who have sadly died from Covid over the last year," he said.
"The Government must learn the lessons from their mistakes, notably its failure to adequately protect care home staff and residents, which has tragically meant that too many families have lost loved ones to this pandemic."
Chris Clarkson, MP for Heywood and Middleton, said he hoped the 'sad state of affairs' would encourage more people to get their coronavirus vaccine.
"I'm extremely sad to hear this. It is important to remember that these are not statistics, but people's lives," he said, speaking of the ONS report.
"That's why it is so important that people get their jab when it's offered.
"I know some people locally have been choosing not to get their vaccination for a number of reasons, but I hope this sad state of affairs will serve as a reminder that we still need to do out bit in the fight against Covid."
Other areas in Greater Manchester with a low fatality rate included parts of Altrincham and Hale, West Didsbury, Chorlton, and Piccadilly and Ancoats.
"In the city centre we have a lot of people who work in hospitality who were on furlough for much of 2020," said Cllr Davies on why fatalities in central areas have been low.
"The main factors I believe are age, occupation and positive attitudes towards vaccines."
Cllr Davies warned that she didn't want the figures to give residents 'any feeling of jubilation.'
"People in Deansgate haven’t died but their parents, relatives, friends and colleagues have.
"I don’t want there to be any feeling of jubilation about this.
"Those of us in Deansgate sitting at home were very grateful to the people going out and about and doing food deliveries and services like that."
The picture in the whole of Greater Manchester does now appear to be shifting, with six boroughs recording an infection rate below the national average, according to the latest figures.
Cases fell by more than a quarter in eight Greater Manchester boroughs, in the week ending August 1.
It comes as ten areas throughout the region saw a week-on-week fall in their infection rates.
This drop is expected to be replicated in fatalities, as the former head of health statistics at the ONS said England and Wales may now be 'over the hill' when it comes to Covid deaths.
Speaking on LBC, Jamie Jenkins said: "(Cases) in England and Wales have been coming down since July 19.
"The cases have been falling for a couple of weeks there, then you get that time-lag effect when cases start coming down, around five or six days later you start seeing hospital admissions come down.
"And then you start seeing deaths come down.
"I think looking at the data, we normally see deaths peaking around 14 days after cases come down, I think we might start being over the hill now when it comes to deaths."
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "Every death from this virus is a tragedy and our deepest sympathies go out to anyone who has lost a loved one.
"Throughout the pandemic we have done all we can to save lives including by focusing on vulnerable people in adult social care.
"We have provided billions of pounds to support the sector including on infection and prevention control measures, free PPE, priority vaccinations and additional testing.
"As a result, 93% of residents eligible staff in care home settings have had two vaccine doses."
