EXTENDED opening hours are to be introduced next week at drop-in Covid-19 vaccine clinics across NHS Forth Valley, including in Alloa.

The drop-in clinics, which started last week, are operating at Forth Valley College's three campuses in Alloa, Stirling and Falkirk.

No appointments are necessary and the extended hours will see vaccinations available for anyone over the age of 18 from 8.30am until 7pm from Monday, July 5.

The drop-in sessions will run until Saturday, July 18, in a bid to vaccinate as many people as possible during the month of July.

Jillian Taylor, operational lead for the coronavirus vaccination programme at NHS Forth Valley, said: “Unfortunately, we are seeing an increase in cases across Scotland and, as we approach the final stages of the first Covid-19 vaccination programme, we have extended the opening hours of our local drop-in clinics to make it easier for people to attend.

“All of the evidence says that the vaccines are working as we continue to battle the faster-transmitting Delta variant which is now dominant.

“I would therefore encourage anyone in Forth Valley who hasn’t yet been vaccinated to take advantage of these drop-in clinics as the best route out of this pandemic is getting as many people vaccinated as quickly as possible.”

People can head along for their first jab or for their second dose if it has been at least eight weeks since their first shot.

The extended opening hours follow record numbers of new cases being reported across Scotland on Thursday, July 1.

As many as 4,234 cases were reported in the country while 175 were added to the running total in the area covered by NHS Forth Valley.

On the same day, Clackmannanshire saw 28 new cases reported, which was a reduction from the 46 highlighted in statistics the day before.

As reported in the Advertiser this week, public health officials have linked the recent increases to a number of factors.

These include outbreaks in workplaces and schools in the area as well as higher levels of community transmission due to the aforementioned Delta variant of coronavirus.

The confirmation by Miss Taylor that the Delta variant is “now dominant” confirms predictions by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), which earlier said that this strain of the virus will represent 90 per cent of coronavirus variants circulating on the continent.