The number of weekly deaths involving coronavirus in England and Wales fell by almost a third in a week and reached its lowest level for seven weeks, official figures show.

There were 2,589 deaths involving coronavirus in England and Wales registered in the week ending May 22, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

This is down 32% from the previous seven days, with 3,810 deaths involving coronavirus registered in the week ending May 15.

The ONS said there were 12,288 deaths registered in England and Wales in the week ending May 22 – a drop of 2,285 from the previous week but still 2,348 more than the five-year average.

There were 1,289 excess deaths in care homes during the seven days, compared with the five-year average, and 24 fewer deaths in hospitals.

In total, the ONS said there have been 286,759 deaths to date in England and Wales – 51,466 more than the five-year average.

Of the deaths registered by May 22, 43,837 mentioned Covid-19 on the death certificate – 15.3% of all deaths.

Detailed analysis on non-Covid-19 deaths will be published by the ONS on Friday.

The proportion of deaths in care homes involving coronavirus fell to below a third in the week ending May 22.

Some 32.5% of all deaths in care homes involved Covid-19 during the seven days, compared with 37.2% the week before.