Vaccinations protect your child from many serious and potentially deadly diseases. They also protect other people by helping to stop the spread of diseases.
Our nurses are highly trained in giving your child their immunisations.
Please beware: many anti-vaccine stories are spread through social media. They are usually not be based on scientific evidence. You will put your child at risk of a serious illness if you do not get them vaccinated. Vaccines do not cause autism: studies have found no evidence of a link between MMR and autism. Vaccines do not overload or weaken the immune system or cause allergies. Please speak to one of our nurses if you have concerns.
Vaccines sometimes cause mild side effects that will not last long, for example feeling off colour, having a fever, or having a sore arm for 2 or 3 days.
NHS vaccination schedule
| Age | Vaccines |
|---|---|
| 8 weeks | 6-in-1 vaccine (1st dose) Rotavirus vaccine (1st dose) MenB vaccine (1st dose) |
| 12 weeks | 6-in-1 vaccine (2nd dose) MenB vaccine (2nd dose) Rotavirus vaccine (2nd dose) |
| 16 weeks | 6-in-1 vaccine (3rd dose) Pneumococcal vaccine (1st dose) |
| Age | Vaccines |
|---|---|
| 1 year | MMRV vaccine (1st dose for children born on or after 1 January 2025) Pneumococcal vaccine (2nd dose) MenB vaccine (3rd dose) |
| 1 year and 6 months (18 months) | 6-in-1 vaccine (4th dose for children born on or after 1 July 2024) MMRV vaccine (1st or 2nd dose for children born on or after 1 July 2024) |
| 2 to 15 years | Children’s flu vaccine (every year until children finish Year 11 of secondary school) |
| 3 years and 4 months | 4-in-1 pre-school booster vaccine MMRV vaccine (1st or 2nd dose for children born between 1 September 2022 and 31 December 2024) |
| 12 to 13 years | HPV vaccine |
| 14 years | Td/IPV vaccine (3-in-1 teenage booster) MenACWY vaccine |
| Age | Vaccines |
|---|---|
| 65 years | Flu vaccine (given every year after turning 65) Pneumococcal vaccine Shingles vaccine (if you turned 65 on or after 1 September 2023) |
| 70 to 79 years | Shingles vaccine |
| 75 to 79 years | RSV vaccine |
| 75 years and over | COVID-19 vaccine (usually given in spring and winter) |
| When it’s offered | Vaccines |
|---|---|
| During flu season | Flu vaccine in pregnancy |
| Around 20 weeks pregnant | Whooping cough (pertussis) vaccine |
| From 28 weeks pregnant | RSV vaccine |
College / University
If you’re starting college or university, you should make sure you’ve already had:
- the MenACWY vaccine – which protects against serious infections like meningitis. You can still ask your GP for this vaccine until your 25th birthday.
- 2 doses of the MMR vaccine – as there are outbreaks of mumps and measles at universities. If you have not previously had 2 doses of MMR, you can still ask your GP for the vaccine.
- the HPV vaccine – which helps protect against genital warts and cancers caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV), such as cervical cancer.
What the Vaccines Protect Against
- 6-in-1: Diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), polio, Hib disease, and hepatitis B.
- Rotavirus: Rotavirus, a common cause of severe diarrhoea.
- MenB: Meningococcal group B disease.
- PCV: Pneumococcal disease, which can cause pneumonia, meningitis, and septicaemia.
- MMR: Measles, mumps, and rubella.
- Hib/MenC: Hib and meningococcal group C disease.
- 4-in-1 booster: Tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis, and polio.
- Flu vaccine: Seasonal flu.
- HPV: Cancers and genital warts caused by human papillomavirus.
Myths
Myth: Flu is just a bad cold
Fact: Flu can cause serious illness, especially in young children and people with existing health conditions. Each year, healthy children are hospitalised with flu complications, and tragically, some children die from flu. It’s much more severe than a common cold.
Myth: The vaccine gives you the flu
Fact: The nasal spray contains weakened viruses that cannot cause flu. Your child might get a runny nose, but this isn’t flu.
Myth: My child had it last year, so they are protected
Fact: Flu viruses change each year. That’s why the vaccine is updated annually to match the most common strains.
Myth: There’s no point giving a child the nasal spray flu vaccine because they just sneeze it out
Fact: The nasal spray flu vaccine is designed to work even if a child sneezes shortly after it’s given. The vaccine is absorbed very quickly by the lining of the nose, which means it still provides protection even if a bit of it comes out. It’s a quick, painless, and effective way to help protect your child – and others around them – from flu.
Myth: Vaccine overload a child’s immune system
Fact: Vaccines use only a tiny portion of the immune system’s capability. Every day children touch, eat, and encounter things that give their immune system much more to deal with than a vaccine does.
Myth: Natural immunity is better than vaccine-acquired immunity
Fact: Natural infection can lead to serious complications. Vaccines offer safe, effective protection without the risks of the disease itself.
Myth: Vaccines contain harmful ingredients.
Fact: All vaccine ingredients are present in safe amounts and are thoroughly tested for safety and effectiveness.
Myth: Childhood illnesses like measles aren’t serious
Fact: Measles can lead to pneumonia, brain inflammation, and even death. Vaccination helps prevent these severe outcomes
Myth: The MMR vaccine causes autism.
Fact: There is no link between the MMR vaccine and autism. This myth stems from a discredited study that has been thoroughly debunked.
