Vaccine update: issue 317, February 2021
Published 23 March 2021
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Record levels of flu vaccine uptake in 2020 to 2021
This year saw the roll out of the biggest NHS flu vaccination programme ever, with the aim of offering protection to as many eligible people as possible during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Public Health England (PHE) and NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE/I) national Influenza teams would like to extend a huge thank you to all those involved for your tremendous work in delivering the most successful programme ever this season. This was despite the many challenges and complexities that you faced during the pandemic.
Despite these challenges, at the end of January 2021 NHS services had vaccinated a record 80.7% of those aged 65 years and over in England. This is the highest uptake ever achieved for this group and exceeds the World Health Organization uptake ambition of 75%.
For frontline healthcare workers and 2 and 3 year olds, the highest ever recorded levels of flu vaccine uptake have also been achieved.
Flu vaccine uptake rates are higher than the same time last season for all other eligible groups. This includes an uptake rate of 52.4% for those in clinical at-risk groups, which is the highest level achieved in the last 7 seasons.
The provisional monthly flu vaccine uptake data from 1 September 2020 to 31 January 2021 published on Thursday 25 February is summarised below.
Table 1: GP patients flu vaccine uptake between 1 September and 31 January, 2018 to 2019 and 2020 to 2021
| Eligible cohort | 2020/2021 | 2019/2020 | 2018/2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 65 years and over | 80.7% | 71.9% | 71.3% |
| At risk groups | 52.4% | 43.6% | 46.9% |
| Pregnant women | 43.6% | 43.1% | 45.0% |
| 2 year olds in risk group | 62.3% | 51.2% | 53.7% |
| 2 year olds not in risk group | 55.0% | 41.4% | 42.9% |
| 3 year olds in risk group | 66.1% | 52.5% | 55.9% |
| 3 year olds not in risk group | 57.5% | 42.2% | 44.8% |
| 50 to 64 years in risk group | 65.7% | N/A | N/A |
| 50 to 64 years not in risk group | 34.1% | N/A | N/A |
See Seasonal flu vaccine uptake in GP patients: monthly data, 2020 to 2021 for the complete data set.
Table 2: School-aged children flu vaccine uptake between 1 September and 31 January, 2018 to 2019 and 2020 to 2021
| Eligible cohort | 2020/2021 | 2019/2020 | 2018/2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reception (4 to 5 years) | 63.5% | 64.2% | 63.9% |
| Year 1 (5 to 6 years) | 63.9% | 63.5% | 63.4% |
| Year 2 (6 to 7 years) | 63.2% | 62.6% | 61.4% |
| Year 3 (7 to 8 years) | 62.6% | 60.6% | 60.2% |
| Year 4 (8 to 9 years) | 61.2% | 59.6% | 58.0% |
| Year 5 (9 to 10 years) | 60.5% | 57.2% | 56.2% |
| Year 6 (10 to 11 years) | 58.5% | 55.1% | N/A |
| Reception to Year 6 (4 to 11 years) | 61.9% | 60.3% | N/A |
| Year 7 (11 to 12 years) | 55.5% | N/A | N/A |
| Reception to Year 7 (4 to 12 years) | 61.1% | N/A | N/A |
See Seasonal flu vaccine uptake in children of school age: monthly data, 2020 to 2021 for the complete data set.
Table 3: Frontline healthcare workers flu vaccine uptake between 1 September and 31 January, 2018 to 2019 and 2020 to 2021
| Eligible cohort | 2020/2021 | 2019/2020 | 2018/2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frontline healthcare workers | 76.3% | 72.4% | 68.6% |
See Seasonal flu vaccine uptake in healthcare workers: monthly data, 2020 to 2021 for the complete data set.
For GP patients and frontline healthcare workers the last publication of monthly data for the season will be on 25 March 2021. All data is provisional, with final end-of-season data published in the PHE annual reports on 24 June 2021.
On 7 January 2021 a press release from NHSE/I, PHE and the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, thanking NHS services for their incredible hard work in achieving some of the highest ever vaccination rates for flu was issued.
Thank you to you all for the tremendous work and life-saving achievement that this programme has provided for our population and the best annual flu vaccination programme of all time.
COVID-19 Green Book chapter 14a
The Green Book chapter 14a has been revised and published on 12 February 2021. It has been updated to include information on the Moderna mRNA vaccine, further changes to the advice on managing allergic history and allergies after dose 1 and updated information and clarification of advice on pregnancy.
Please bookmark the page as it is updated frequently in relation to new data and vaccines.
COVID-19 vaccinations currently being offered to those over 75 years of age and in the eligible at-risk groups
The COVID-19 programme continues at pace and we want to thank everyone for all the incredible hard work to make this roll-out so successful.
We now have a very good uptake of the vaccine in the over 80s age group and very good signs that health and social care professionals are taking up the offer of vaccination. We are very keen to encourage all the eligible groups to come forward when they are invited for their vaccination.
COVID-19 vaccination explainer videos
COVID-19 vaccination FAQ explainer videos have been produced to address the frequently asked questions that people have about the programme.
The set of 52 COVID-19 explainer videos is now published on PHE YouTube, see links to the playlists below. They are short and easy to share and address many of the COVID-19 vaccination programme queries and FAQs that have inundated our inboxes, so please use them liberally.
PHE YouTube links to playlists but please do watch them all as they are all individually valuable and pertinent to the current rollout and related concerns and are a rich resource, some of which is time-sensitive. This means that as new data and vaccines are added, all videos can be subject to change and being withdrawn and replaced due to new information.
All the short videos can also be downloaded from the Campaign Resource Centre so that you can upload them to websites, share them on social media and send them or the links to them to partners, stakeholders and working groups that you are members of, you will need to register if you cannot access the links below.
| Watch on PHE YouTube | Download from the Campaign Resource Centre |
|---|---|
| Dr Mary Ramsay | 17 videos |
| Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam | 4 videos |
| Dr Kevin Brown | 8 videos |
| Dr Anthony Harnden | 10 videos |
| Dr Wei Shen Lim | 3 videos |
| Dr Shriti Pattani | 5 videos |
| Dr Julie Yates | 5 videos |
‘Which COVID-19 vaccine?’ poster
This poster is for health professionals to identify the correct syringe, doses and presentation of the Pfizer and Oxford AstraZeneca vaccines. Please bookmark the link as this poster will be updated as new supply chain information is released and new vaccines are added to the programme.
Copies are available to order from Health Publications using product code COV2020520.
Resources for people with a learning disability or who have autism
These resources are aimed at people who have or care for someone with a learning disability. We now have all the leaflets and resources planned for this important group including an Easy Read consent form. This version of the form may be helpful for other groups who do not read well, or who have sight problems.
All women of childbearing age must read the COVID-19 vaccination for women who might get pregnant, who are pregnant or are breastfeeding their baby guidance before going for vaccination.
Easy-read COVID-19 vaccination resources
The easy-read consent form and leaflets below are available for download and paper copies are available to order using the relevant product codes.
- easy-read COVID-19 vaccination consent form for adults – product code COV2020528
- easy-read what to expect after vaccination leaflet – product code COV2020307V2ER
- easy-read guide for women who might get pregnant, are pregnant or who are breastfeeding leaflet – product code COV2020374V3ER
Easy-read COVID-19 vaccination videos below are available to download using the relevant product codes.
- What is Coronavirus – product code COV2020533
- easy-read video guide to what the COVID-19 vaccine is – product code COV2020534
- easy-read video guide to getting the COVID-19 vaccine – product code COV2020535
- easy-read video guide to how you will feel after the COVID-19 vaccine – product code COV2020536
- easy-read video guide to what to do after having your COVID-19 vaccine – product code COV2020537
Other versions of these leaflets are available in braille, British Sign language (BSL) and translated into many languages. Please visit Health Publications to order paper copies or download the videos.
NHS England Learning Disability and Autism Programme have produced an information about vaccines video for people with a learning disability and their carers. A set of short social media clips of the video are available to download from the Health Publications.
Free RNIB training for vaccination staff and volunteers
It’s essential that everyone who comes for a vaccine feels safe, supported and understood. The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) have free training available to staff and volunteers working on the vaccine programme to help you feel more confident in supporting people with sight loss.
You can pick from 3 short online training modules covering communication, how-to guide, and the experiences of people with sight loss, relevant to your time in the vaccination programme and beyond. Click on the ‘register’ button to access the training. You can also download a quick handy tips guide for working with people with sight loss and display it in staff areas of your vaccination centre.
There are 1,500 places and we hope that as many of our vaccination workforce will have time to share the handy tips guide and take up the offer of training so kindly provided by the RNIB and supported nationally by our devolved administrations, a truly UK-wide initiative. First come, first-served basis, so do register as soon as possible. Training is only 20 minutes per unit for 2 units and 40 minutes for the final unit and counts as CPD.
Vaccine supply
For routine and non-routine vaccination supply please see the March 2021 issue 318.