POLICE have issued a warning to people to stay at home over the sunny Easter break where possible in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Warm and dry weather is predicted for Worcester this weekend, leading West Mercia Police to repeat their advice to people to stay indoors.

A spokesman for West Mercia Police said: "With a major national incident currently in place for Covid-19 and with national advice evolving rapidly, it’s important we don’t lose sight of the part we all have to play in staying safe.

"The pressure being placed upon the NHS and emergency services is well known so a national campaign has been launched to encourage all road users to ‘Take Extra Care’ to reduce any additional strain onto emergency services.

"We are encouraging all road users to ‘Take Extra Care’ over these coming weeks, particularly those of motorised vehicles that are still using the road network for essential work and supplies, but also those that may be walking or cycling for their one piece of exercise per day."

Statistics show over 160,000 people were killed or seriously injured on Great Britain’s roads in 2019, an average of 440 a day.

To reduce the number of road casualties during this time the campaign urges all road users to follow the Government guidelines and only travel when essential for work, supplies or as allocated exercise locally.

The force has also issued a warning following a 400 per cent increase in Coronavirus scams in March.

Between February 1 and March 18 this year Action Fraud has received 105 reports related to coronavirus scams in which householders have been targeted and defrauded of £970,000.

Detective Sergeant Jon Cooper said: “We are not trying to scare people at a time when they are already anxious. We simply want people to be aware of the very simple steps they can take to protect themselves from handing over their money, or personal details, to criminals.

“Law enforcement, government and industry are working together to protect people, raise awareness, take down fraudulent websites and email addresses, and ultimately bring those responsible to justice.

“If you think you’ve been a victim of a scam, contact your bank immediately and report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or via actionfraud.police.uk.”