New campaign launches urging the public to get COVID-19 vaccine
Real-world data shows hospitalisations and deaths from COVID-19 are falling significantly due to the vaccine roll-out.
- Government launches new national campaign to urge under-50s to get the jab
- TV adverts to begin from Monday 26 April, showcasing the collective effort of the largest vaccination programme in UK history
- Real-world data shows hospitalisations and deaths from COVID-19 are falling significantly due to the vaccine roll-out
- Royal Mail will apply a special postmark to stamped mail in support of the campaign
People aged 50 and under are being urged to get their COVID-19 vaccine when their turn comes in a major new campaign being launched today (Monday 26 April).
The ‘every vaccination gives us hope’ campaign encourages those due to be offered vaccines in the second phase of the roll-out to join the millions of people who have already received their jabs.
As part of the campaign, the vaccine programme’s first ever TV advert showcases some of the tens of thousands of health and care workers and volunteers involved in the roll-out across the UK, as well as those who have received the vaccine. The advert will also run across radio, multicultural media, social media and out-of-home advertising like billboards in prominent locations across Manchester, Liverpool and London, including in Piccadilly Circus.
The campaign will predominantly be aimed at people under the age of 50 who will be offered their first dose, as well as the over 50s who are booked in for their second dose, to encourage vaccine uptake and highlight the significant role the vaccine is playing in preventing infections, hospitalisations and deaths.
Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said:
The UK vaccination programme will go down in history as a phenomenal national effort in the battle against COVID-19.
Vaccines are helping us get back to doing the things we have missed – they protect you and those around you.
This campaign is a remarkable and poignant reminder of everything we’ve been through as a country and everything we have to look forward to – as well as the tireless efforts of our volunteers, NHS heroes and the British people.
Every vaccination gives us hope and I urge everyone to take up the offer of a vaccine when it comes, as we continue on the path back to normality.
The campaign comes as over 33.5 million people have now received a first dose of a vaccine – over 63.5% of the UK adult population – with 12 million receiving their second dose. This means over 22.8% of the UK adult population have now received both doses of a vaccine, with 45.5 million vaccines administered overall.
The new TV advert embodies the collective effort of everyone who has played a part in the largest vaccination programme in UK history – from the scientists and clinical trial participants, to NHS and care sector staff and volunteer stewards at vaccination sites – who have all worked tirelessly to protect those most at risk.
It features a poignant soundtrack recorded by songwriter and artist Shells, who was longlisted in Glastonbury’s Emerging Talent competition to perform at the postponed 2021 Glastonbury festival. The track, a cover of Dinah Washington’s ‘What a Difference a Day Makes’, will be released to the public in the coming weeks.
The campaign will also urge the public to get their facts about vaccines from trusted sources like NHS.UK and their GP so they can make informed and evidence-based decisions.
A number of organisations across a wide range of sectors such as hospitality, media, retail, manufacturing and construction will be supporting the campaign.
Royal Mail will apply a special postmark to stamped mail, which will run from 5 to 7 May. Google and YouTube will feature vaccine messaging on their channels, and LinkedIn will be providing free advertising space on its platform to help cascade a vaccine message to UK businesses.
Minister for COVID-19 Vaccine Deployment, Nadhim Zahawi, said:
Our vaccination programme has so far saved thousands of lives, protecting our loved ones and bringing down infection rates to a point where we can see normality on the horizon.
This new campaign showcases the fantastic work of health and care staff and volunteers across the country who have delivered this programme, as well as a handful of the millions who have received their vaccine so far.
It’s vital as many people as possible book their vaccine when given the opportunity so we can continue to reduce the impact of this awful virus on our lives, and I urge everyone to play their part and get the jab.
The independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has published its final advice for phase 2 of the COVID-19 vaccination programme, recommending an age-based approach with adults aged 18 to 49 prioritised in descending age order.
Vaccinated people are far less likely to get COVID-19 with symptoms. Vaccinated people are even more unlikely to get serious COVID-19, to be admitted to hospital, or to die from it and there is growing evidence that vaccinated people are less likely to pass the virus to others.
Sir Simon Stevens, NHS England Chief Executive, said:
The biggest and fastest vaccination programme in NHS history continues to reach new medically important milestones, as ten million people in England have now had their second jab, and two-thirds of people aged 45 to 50 have now quickly followed in the footsteps of millions of others to receive their vital first dose of protection.
Recent data from Public Health England (PHE) shows the vaccines are already having a significant impact in the UK in reducing hospitalisations and deaths, and saved more than 10,000 lives between December and March.
Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and Oxford University shows that COVID-19 infections fell significantly by 65% after the first dose of the Oxford/AstraZeneca or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines, rising further after the second dose.
The latest vaccine effectiveness data from PHE show that in those aged over 70, both the Pfizer/BioNTech and Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccines reduce the risk of getting symptomatic disease by around 60% after a single dose. This protection lasts for several weeks. In those aged over 80, protection against hospitalisation is around 80% and the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is 85% effective at stopping people aged over 80 dying from COVID-19.
Since the government and NHS published its vaccine uptake plan in February, the take-up of vaccinations from people of all ethnic minority backgrounds has tripled, outpacing the national average increase across all ethnicities. Uptake among people from a Pakistani background is more than four times higher than it was in February and there has been a 5-fold increase in people taking up the vaccine from a Bangladeshi background.
The government has already hit its target of offering everybody in cohorts 1 to 9 – those aged 50 and over, the clinically vulnerable and health and social care workers – a first dose of the vaccine by 15 April and is on track to offer a jab to all adults in the UK by the end of July.
Case studies
75-year-old retiree Brenda Williams, who features in the TV advert getting her vaccine, said:
After a year of living in isolation, unable to see family and friends, the vaccine is helping us all to be free again. As a member of the older generation, I was so excited to get my vaccine and be protected from the virus.
Everyone who can have the vaccine should trust the experts and get it in order to help the UK and the whole world out of this pandemic.
Thor Porter, 32, a drummer and graphic designer from Salisbury who also appeared in the ad, said:
I feel the vaccine roll-out is key to regaining some form of normality. As a musician, it will hopefully enable venues to reopen and ensure a future in my career.
My mother was a NHS nurse her whole life and then became a school nurse, carrying out mass vaccinations across schools and I know that she would be fully behind this roll-out if she were here today. That’s why I was keen to get my vaccine.
At the end of the day, if we all want to be with our loved ones again then we need to do our bit. We have stayed inside for long enough, let’s get out and get vaccinated.
Background information
The advert can be viewed on Dropbox and We Transfer, including additional video and photo content.
The song is released next Friday 30 April through streaming services such as Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Amazon and will be available on Shazam from Monday 26 April.
The latest UK-wide vaccination statistics
NHS England vaccine statistics for England
PHE’s real-world data on the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines
JCVI’s final advice for phase 2 of the vaccination programme
Ethnic minority groups uptake
Uptake among ethnic minority groups tripled from 7 February 2021 to 7 April 2021, an increase of 235%, from 1.89 million to 5.78 million, outpacing the national average among all ethnicities over the same period (154%).
Uptake among Bangladeshi groups increased 5-fold, from 29,382 to 152,408.
Uptake among Pakistani groups increased 4-fold, from 88,956 to 367,780.
ONS statistics on the protection from infection provided by COVID-19 vaccines
The UK government secured access to the most promising vaccines on behalf of the whole of the UK, Crown Dependencies and overseas territories.
All vaccines being used in the UK have undergone robust clinical trials and have met the independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s strict standards of safety, effectiveness and quality.
Approved vaccines are available from thousands of NHS vaccine centres, GP practices and pharmacies. Around 98% of people live within 10 miles of a vaccination centre in England and vaccinations are taking place at sites including mosques, community centres and football stadiums.