With many children’s routine vaccination schedule interrupted by the pandemic, here is a reminder of which vaccinations children are supposed to have and when…
During the pandemic and the initial lockdown that started in March 2020, many children missed vital vaccination appointments despite many appointments still being available.
While more recent data released by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) show are more stable uptake of vaccinations, there has still been a clear decline over the last 10 years, therefore increasing the risk of an outbreak of some infectious diseases
Parents are urged to ensure that their children’s vaccinations are kept up to prevent such outbreaks.
Dr Mary Ramsay, head of immunisations at UKHSAP, said: “Vaccination is one of the most important things we can do to give children the very best start in life. If children aren’t vaccinated, they’re not protected.”
NHS vaccination schedule:
Babies under one year old
| Eight weeks | Six-in-one vaccine
Rotavirus vaccine MenB |
| 12 weeks | Six-in-one vaccine (2nd dose)
Pneumococcal (PCV) vaccine Rotavirus vaccine (2nd dose) |
| 16 weeks | Six-in-one vaccine (3rd dose)
MenB (2nd dose) |
Children aged between one and five years old
| One-year-olds | Hib/MecC (1st dose)
MMR (1st dose) Pneumococcal vaccine (2nd dose) MenB (3rd dose) |
| 2-10 year olds | Annual flu vaccine (every year until children finish year 11 of secondary school) |
| Three years and four months | MMR (2nd dose)
four-in-one pre-school booster |
If you are worried that you may have missed some of your child’s vaccination appointments, contact your GP and book an appointment. While it’s always best for children to have their vaccinations on time, they can still catch up on most of them at a later date.
