A popular Sefton pub has been forced to close after a coronavirus outbreak.
The Hightown Pub and Kitchen, on Lower Alt Road, will be closed until May 13 after positive Covid cases were discovered.
A post on the pub's Facebook page reads: "Due to an outbreak in the pub and following the government guidelines (isolation period), we have to close until the 13th of May.
"We apologise for any inconveniences and relevant people involved have been notified."
The news comes after a primary school in nearby Formby sent three classes home to isolate after positive cases of Covid-19 were identified.
Trinity St Peter's Primary on Paradise Lane wrote to parents this weekend to confirm the outbreak of cases and the action being taken.
The news comes amid sharp rise in the Covid-19 infection rate in Sefton in recent days - with the borough rate for the week leading up to May 6 standing at 49 cases per 100,000 people.
There were 89 new cases of the virus identified in the borough in just three days between May 4 and 6.
That's nearly five times as high as the infection rates in neighbouring Liverpool or Knowsley.
It is thought that much of that increase is due to outbreaks in the Formby area specifically.
Last week Formby Pool was forced to close over an outbreak of the virus.
The swimming baths and gym, on Elbow Lane, is part-way through a 10-day closure after a number of cases were linked to it.
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