Coronavirus: First cases in NSW children under 10

A two-month-old girl and a seven-year-old boy are among more than 210 new coronavirus cases in NSW.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian arrives for a press conference to update media on COVID-19 in Sydney on Wednesday. Picture: Dean Lewins/AAP

A two-month old boy and a seven-year-old girl have become the first confirmed cases of COVID-19 in children under the age of 10 in NSW, with the state now reporting more than 1000 cases of coronavirus across the state.

NSW chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant said COVID-19 cases had reached 1029 in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday night. The number represents a one-day increase of 211 cases, the highest since tallying began.

As the numbers were released, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian moved to assure the community that while cases had increased, hospitalisations remained few.

“The number of people hospitalised out of those thousands of cases is relatively small, and that’s the way we want to keep it,” Ms Berejiklian said.

Dr Chant told reporters the latest statistical release included two children under the age of 10; the youngest previous COVID-19 case was a 12-year-old girl.

She said the two-month-old boy was showing minimal symptoms and remained in isolation at home. He contracted the disease from a confirmed contact with COVID-19. she added.

The seven-year-old-girl had also developed her symptoms from a close contact, and was showing minimal symptoms. She, too, is in isolation at home.

Ms Chant said of the latest confirmed cases, 500 infections had been acquired overseas, 176 were locally acquired through a contact or association with a cluster, and a further 74 cases had been locally transmitted.

More than 200 cases remain under investigation for their source.