Coronavirus (COVID-19): data for Scotland

The PHS COVID-19 and Respiratory Surveillance dashboard includes the latest data on:

• estimated infection levels from wastewater analysis
• positive cases
• trends in infection levels and cases and demographics

COVID-19 outbreaks and general trends can be estimated by measuring concentrations of the virus in wastewater. The PHS National respiratory infection and COVID-19 statistics provide regular national estimates of COVID-19 levels in wastewater.

The National Records of Scotland (NRS) publication on Deaths registered weekly in Scotland provides data on:

• deaths where COVID-19 was mentioned on the death certificate
• breakdowns by sex, age, health board, local authority and location of death (hospital, care home or home)

NRS also publish more detailed analysis in their Monthly mortality analysis, including:

• age-standardised mortality rates
• leading causes of death
• breakdowns by deprivation

The PHS COVID-19 and Respiratory Surveillance in Scotland dashboard includes latest data on:

• hospital admissions
• number of patients in hospital with recently confirmed COVID-19 (occupancy)

PHS publish monthly data on:

• Delayed discharges in NHS Scotland

The PHS Weekly national respiratory and COVID-19 surveillance report publication includes a vaccination dashboard giving the latest data on:

• number of COVID-19 vaccinations
• % uptake for priority groups
• local level data by health board
• breakdowns by age and JCVI priority group

The Care Inspectorate produce weekly data on:

• number of care homes with a suspected case of COVID-19
• number of deaths reported by adult care homes, including COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 related deaths

NHS Education for Scotland publish fortnightly data on:

• NHS staff reported as absent due to COVID-19

The Care Inspectorate publish weekly data on:

• staff in adult care homes reported as absent due to COVID-19

While no longer updated, a complete record of figures published by the Scottish Government between 9 March 2020 and 8 April 2022 can be found in the Trends in daily data excel files, which are also available as open data. Further detail on these figures can be found on the Data definitions and sources page.

More information on the changes to this page and move of all headline reporting to PHS is available in our blog post.

COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS) data for Scotland was published on the Scottish Government website between 23 October 2020 and 1 July 2022. The latest estimates were available on the Office for National Statistics (ONS) website, along with an overview in the PHS National respiratory infection and COVID-19 statistics, until the final CIS release on 24 March 2023.

Other reports published by Scottish Government during the pandemic:

• the COVID-19 State of the epidemic report brought together the different sources of evidence and data about the Covid epidemic to tell us about the current situation, why we were at that place and what was likely to happen next
• the fortnightly COVID-19 Modelling the epidemic report provided latest findings in modelling the COVID-19 epidemic in Scotland, both in terms of the spread of the disease through the population (epidemiological modelling) and of the demands it will place on the system, for example in terms of health care requirement
• monthly summaries of COVID-19 isolate and support data provided management information on support provided for self-isolation and to those in wider need during the coronavirus pandemic
• the Scottish Government Education Analytical Services: Learning Analysis dashboard provided data on attendance and absence for pupils and staff in schools and childcare settings

During the pandemic, the government published one-off pieces of data and information when there was public interest in making them available. See: additional data and information page for more detail.

PHS COVID-19 statistical report

The PHS National respiratory infection and COVID-19 statistics are published alongside a narrative report, which is available each week over the winter season and provides an overview of COVID-19 bringing together analysis across a range of topics, including:

• variants of concern
• reported cases and estimated infection levels, including
  • positive cases
  • wastewater analysis
• hospital admissions
• vaccination uptake and effectiveness
• hospital/wider system pressures
• wider impacts of COVID-19