HERE is everything we know about coronavirus, both in the Winchester district and nationally.

What is the situation in Winchester?

A person from Hampshire has been confirmed as testing positive for coronavirus - the first case in the county since the outbreak in China.

A government department has confirmed that 12 further patients have tested positive in England.

No further details have been released about the patient from Hampshire. 

An isolated testing pod has been set up at the Royal Hampshire County Hospital.

Hampshire Chronicle:

The area has been set up after NHS England ordered every hospital in the UK to create separate facilities to examine patients, they believe to have the infectious disease.

The trust has confirmed that there have been no positive tests but are unable to provides figures on how many have been carried out in the pod.

The city’s two universities have also issued advice in the wake of the outbreak, with University of Winchester and the Winchester School of Art following national guidance.

Spokespeople from the universities advised staff and students as a number were expected to head home for the Chinese New Year.

What schools have been affected? 

In our area, Swanmore College in the Meon Valley sent a teacher home who had returned from a half-term holiday.

The female teacher was understood to not have developed any symptoms but the school said it was following Government advice.

However, it is has now been reported that the teacher has been allowed to return to teaching.

Hampshire Chronicle:

Kings School in Winchester has also postponed a visit from children in Italy due to concerns over the virus.

Headteacher Matthew Leeming told the Chronicle: "This is our Italian Exchange, with a partner school near Bologna.

"The Italian school contacted us to say they would not be sending their pupils to us on Italian Government advice). We hope that our return visit to Italy in May may still be possible but we will have to wait and see."

What’s the latest advice?

Avoiding hand-shakes is one effective way of reducing the risk of catching coronavirus, experts say.

Thorough hand-washing, maintaining distance from others and avoiding contact like hand-shakes can be a good way to stem the spread of the virus.

As fears intensify over the European spread of Covid-19, health professionals have said everyday precautions like carrying hand sanitiser are the best tools to protect against contracting the illness.

Covering your mouth and nose with a tissue or sleeve when you cough or sneeze, rather than your hands, and binning used tissues immediately is also helpful, according to NHS guidance.

What's happened nationally?

The Prime Minister is to chair an emergency Cobra meeting on coronavirus following a weekend which saw the number of people infected in the UK climb to 36.

Boris Johnson is expected to warn ministers that Covid-19 will present a "significant challenge" to the country as he finalises a new battle plan by the Government.

Thirteen new coronavirus cases have been confirmed in the UK as the number of people infected climbed to 36.

The first person in Scotland to be diagnosed is a Tayside resident who recently travelled from Italy - the worst-affected country in Europe.

Twelve new cases were diagnosed in England on Sunday and the Health Secretary admitted it was "inevitable" the deadly virus would continue to spread.

Matt Hancock would not rule out following China's lead in shutting down cities if the Covid-19 outbreak escalates.

The UK looks set for more widespread infection of coronavirus as more cases occur among people with no links to overseas outbreaks, a senior Public Health England (PHE) official has said.

Globally, the number of people killed worldwide by the virus exceeds 3,000 and there have been almost 90,000 confirmed cases.