Eager residents hoping to check if they have the South African COVID-19 variant have faced difficulties this week as attempts to book asymptomatic PCR tests have been unsuccessful.

People who live and work in Wandsworth and Lambeth were asked to get a COVID-19 test on Monday, April 12, after 44 confirmed and 30 probable cases of the strain were identified in the area.

Many have struggled to book an appointment for an asymptomatic PCR test, with at least two centres in Wandsworth showed no appointments available for the period between Monday 12 to Friday April 23.

The facilities where booking is unavailable are at Tooting Leisure Centre and Wandsworth Town Hall.

However, Wandsworth Council has urged residents to “be patient” as “testing will take some days to complete”.

This follows reports of long wait times outside test centres yesterday (April 13).

Pictures of queues that snake around facilities in Lambeth and Wandsworth were shared on social media, with comments that lines were up to three hours long.

A Wandsworth Council spokesperson said:

“We are working closely with colleagues in NHS test and trace, who are conducting the tests, to find additional test locations and are confident we will soon be able to confirm these details. There are currently also two locations where people can collect home testing kits.

“We are urging people to get tested as quickly as possible but with around 320,000 residents who need to be tested this process will take some days to complete so we would ask residents to be patient, continue to check our website for the latest information and to stick to the long standing rules on social distancing, wearing of masks and washing of hands.

“We will also be writing to every household in the borough to outline all the available testing options.”