A new walk-through coronavirus testing site will open tomorrow in Oxford city centre.

People will be able to book appointments at the facility, which will be based in the car park at the former Contractors Compound in Osney Lane.

Run by Serco and offering self-administered tests, it is aimed at improving access to tests.

Testing is only available for those with coronavirus symptoms – a high temperature, a new continuous cough, or a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste.

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Anyone with one or more of these symptoms should book a test at nhs.uk/coronavirus or by calling 119. 

Testing at the new site will start on Saturday with appointments made available each day.

Anyone testing positive for the virus in England will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace to help them trace their contacts.

The new site will be the second walk-through testing facility in the city, the other based at Oxford Brookes University.

Drive-through testing is done at Oxford Parkway Park & Ride.

Oxford University also runs its own coronavirus testing for staff and students.

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Health Minister Lord Bethell said: “To respond to the coronavirus, we have built a major testing and tracing system from scratch.

"We are constantly working to expand and improve it with new technologies and innovations so everyone with symptoms can get a test.

“New walk-in sites like this one makes it even easier to get a test no matter where you live."

Baroness Dido Harding, interim executive chair of the National Institute for Health Protection, said: “Walk through sites offer communities better access to coronavirus testing, so everyone with symptoms can get a test.

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"This new site is part of our ongoing work to expand our testing network across the UK which is now has the capacity to process more than 500,000 tests a day."

She added:"We will continue to expand capacity to improve test turnaround times and push forward testing innovations to make sure anyone who needs a test can get one.

The testing centre is being run by Serco and will offer self-administered tests.

Kevin Craven, Serco CEO for UK and Europe said: “We are pleased to be supporting the Government and the NHS in setting up and managing the new testing centre in Oxford city centre, as well as the testing centres we are already operating."