New figures show which universities in Wales had the highest coronavirus rates.
Overall, the numbers of cases reported to higher education institutions have been small though there were significant surges in cases back in the autumn.
According to data released by the Welsh Government each university experienced a peak in cases at different times. Cardiff University has seen the largest peak but this was the result of mass testing and so should be interpreted with caution.
The peak in Cardiff University cases is the result of 600 students being tested by the Cardiff & Vale LHB Nursing Team over the weekend of October 10 and 11, 2020, and a further 700 being tested by the mobile test unit over the following week.
Cardiff Metropolitan University closed for the Christmas break on the 17 December 2020. Bangor University and the University of Wales, Trinity Saint David closed for the Christmas break on Friday 18 December 2020. As a result there is no data for these institutions until they returned after Christmas.
The universities with the most recorded cases were:
- Cardiff University - 1401
- Swansea University - 752
- University of South Wales - 510
- Bangor University 359
- Cardiff Metropolitan University - 311
- University of Wales, Trinity Saint David - 183
- Aberystwyth University - 102
- Glyndwr University - 72
This chart shows when the peaks were in Wales' higher educations settings:
It is important to note that from January 11, Swansea University changed their reporting process to reflect only students that are residing in local accommodation or halls of residence and excludes homestays, unless they are attending campus.
The figures include both staff and students and refer only to cases made known to the HEI’s faculty. The numbers of positive cases in university staff and students may therefore be higher than the figures reported here.
