Almost 15,000 more people in Norfolk and Waveney are now fully vaccinated, with the nation's so-called 'Freedom Day' fast approaching.

Fresh data, published on Thursday, shows that another 14,227 follow-up injections were administered during the latest seven-day period.

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That is around 4,000 more than last week.

It means 597,185 patients in the area are double-jabbed, which is 70.1% of the adult population.

But in the week up to July 11, only 8,484 went to appointments for the very first time - down more than 5,500.

Almost nine out of every 10 people (89pc) in Norfolk and Waveney - or 757,935 - have received at least one layer of protection from the virus.

The overall weekly total of 22,711 also represents a new low for the area since NHS England began releasing more regular statistics in January.

It has not risen since the final week of May, when 66,306 shots were administered.

In truth, it is no real surprise to see continued decline given the rollout began seven months ago and the majority of the population have been eligible for a jab for some time.

People aged 18 to 39 now make up the majority of first dose recipients, but the more readily available Oxford/AstraZeneca product is not being used on anyone under the age of 40.

That means health officials are having to rely heavily on the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.

In recent weeks, the drop-off was also put down to weather, the easing of lockdown and Euro 2020.

Norfolk and Waveney has, however, performed consistently well throughout the programme when it comes to vaccination rates.

Norfolk and Waveney Health and Care Partnership ranks fifth out of 42 health systems in the country for its first dose progress, and goes one better for second jabs.

Moreover, the area has the eighth-best rate for giving first doses to under-30s, with almost 100,000 (72.1pc) accepting a vaccine so far.

And 31,192 people aged 18 to 29 (22.9pc) are now fully vaccinated, with more to follow soon after the interval between jabs was cut from 12 to eight weeks.