THOSE living in Middlesbrough are "most likely" to ignore the "stay at home" guidance issued by the government, a health app has suggested.

As of Thursday (April 2), around 25 percent of those in Middlesbrough said they would not be staying in doors - when asked about sticking to the rules.

Research led by Evergreen Health, developed a nationwide survey to ask people for their response to coronavirus.

More than 26,700 users responded to the survey helping the company build a "heat map" of how well different parts of the UK were sticking to the rules.

The data, which excludes key workers, found that residents in Middlesbrough were the least likely to adhere to strict government guidance.

It was shortly followed by North Hertfordshire and Burnley in Lancashire, where residents were also among the least likely to stay at home.

However, those in the Ryedale district of North Yorkshire were the best at staying at home with 98.2 percent of residents saying they would stick to the rules.

In the survey, respondents were also asked about symptoms of COVID-19, such as whether they have a dry cough or a temperature and if they are self-isolating, and also when they recover.

The anonymised data will be shared with the NHS and data scientists at the universities of Liverpool and Manchester to help them analyse the progress of the outbreak.

Dr Ian Hall, from the University of Manchester, said: "Respondents are supporting a better understanding of the local experience of COVID-19 disease through sharing their data, which will be incredibly useful to national and local planning.

"This is an exciting emerging data stream and I look forward to helping interpret the data, with colleagues in Manchester and Liverpool, as it provides situational awareness to users and policy makers alike."