Residents praise faster turnaround at Doncaster Covid testing sites once described as 'chaos' as waiting times plummet

But residents are now praising the speed of efficiency of the Covid testng facilities that are being run in Doncaster to keep track of the illness.

At the height of lockdown in April, angry residents told the Free Press of four and five hour waits in hot cars as they waited to be seen at the testing centre at Doncaster Sheffield Airport.

But as lockdown eases, residents are now describing quick visits which have seen them in and out of the site within 20 minutes.

Teacher Angela Gibson was tested at the start of July, arriving to be tested at around lunchtime. She was given a form to fill in her contact details. She said she was waiting no longer than 10 minutes before she was directed to a gazebo to be tested, and said she was contacted with her results – which were negative – the following day.

Angela, who works at Hall Cross School, said: “I don’t think I was there for more than 15 minutes in total. It was very well done, very efficient, and I was extremely pleased with how it went. They’d said to avoid lunchtime as it was the busiest period."

Another resident told how quickly he was able to complete a test at the airport site within an hour of booking it.

He told the Free Press: “I booked online and was able to do it within about an hour of booking it.

“I drove over and did the test myself, sat in my car after they explained it all to me. You have to stick a swab down your throat and then use the same swab up your nose – it’s not very pleasant.

“The whole thing probably took about 20 minutes and was a very weird experience.”

Public health bosses at Doncaster Council confirmed that testing was still being carried out at Doncaster airport.

A site carrying out Covid blood tests at the Keepmoat Stadium has also been run, for key NHS workers.

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