WIREDGOV

Parents, families and guardians are being urged to contact their local GP, school or health centre to make sure their children’s vaccinations are up to date, councils have announced. 

The Local Government Association, which represents councils in England and Wales, said that as we come to understand the true scale of the impact that coronavirus has had on the nation and local services, failure to vaccinate children today could lead to avoidable consequences in the long term. 

It said that many children and young people will have missed out on routine HPV, meningitis, and MMR vaccinations as they were unable to attend schools and health clinics during the coronavirus lockdown. 

Research by Public Health England and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine shows that immunisations fell by 20 per cent in the first three weeks of lockdown. 

The LGA is calling for the Government to set out its plan to ensure that children receive routine vaccinations without overwhelming GPs, clinics and schools, and to provide the necessary funding to allow local authority workforces to cope with the demand. 

It said that schools have remained open throughout the pandemic and have demonstrated that they have the control measures in place to safely provide immunisation programmes on site. 

A national effort to vaccinate children and young people will relieve the long term pressures on our health services by avoiding preventable diseases.

Cllr Judith Blake, Chair of the LGA’s Children and Young People Board, said: 

“Vaccines are an absolutely essential part of our children’s health and wellbeing, so if you or any member of your household are not displaying symptoms of coronavirus and are not self-isolating, vaccinations should happen as normal.

“Local services are working hard to ensure that people including babies, children and pregnant women still receive their routine vaccinations – they provide essential protection against potentially life-threatening diseases.

“The national immunisation programme is highly successful in reducing the number of serious and life-threatening diseases such as whooping cough, scarlet fever and measles. High vaccine uptake can prevent a resurgence of these infections, which can cause harm and put unnecessary added pressure on the NHS.

“We really do encourage parents to check if their child needs any vaccinations to make sure they are properly protected.”

Notes to editors

A full list of vaccinations and when they are available for children and adults is accessible through the NHS website.