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Covid-19 and flu

From Thursday 3 October 2024, all eligible people are being urged by health leaders to get vaccinated. Especially those that would benefit from the vaccines the most, such as pregnant women, or those who are clinically vulnerable to covid-19 and flu.

Those eligible for a flu vaccination this autumn / winter are:

  • pregnant women
  • all children aged 2 or 3 years on 31 August 2024
  • primary school aged children (from Reception to Year 6)
  • secondary school aged children (from Year 7 to Year 11)
  • all children in clinical risk groups aged from 6 months to less than 18 years.
  • those aged 65 years and over
  • those aged 18 years to under 65 years in clinical risk groups (as defined by the Green Book)
  • those in long-stay residential care homes
  • carers in receipt of carer’s allowance, or those who are the main carer of an elderly or disabled person
  • close contacts of immunocompromised individuals
  • frontline workers in a social care setting without an employer led occupational health scheme including those working for a registered residential care or nursing home, registered domiciliary care providers, voluntary managed hospice providers and those that are employed by Those who receive direct payments (personal budgets) or Personal Health budgets, such as Personal Assistants.

 

Those eligible for a Covid-19 vaccination this autumn / winter are:

  • residents in a care home for older adults
  • all adults aged 65 years and over
  • persons aged 6 months to 64 years in a clinical risk group, as defined in the Green Book, including pregnant women
  • frontline health and social care workers and staff in care homes for older adults.

 

All eligible people will be invited for their vaccinations by the NHS bookings team, or their GP practice. However, those that are eligible do not have to wait to receive an invitation to be able to book an appointment or attend a walk-in clinic.

Vaccination appointments can be booked now using the National Booking service website or by calling 119. A local online walk-in clinic finder also shows a list of all walk-in clinics available across LLR, where people can attend with no appointment necessary. Available walk-in clinics can be found by clicking here.

Anyone who believes they should be eligible for a vaccine can check with their GP practice or by clicking here. There must also be a gap of at least three months between Covid-19 vaccinations. The NHS App provides details of all your previous Covid-19 and flu vaccinations.

In LLR people can access their Covid-19 and flu vaccines via their GP practice, community pharmacies or walk-in clinics. The Leicester Royal Infirmary (LRI) will also be providing specialist vaccination clinics for:

  • all children in clinical risk groups aged from 6 months up to 18 years of age,
  • people aged 65 and over and,
  • frontline health and social care workers.

 

Children in clinical risk groups from 6 months to 4 years of age can book appointments for the LRI clinics by calling the central booking team on 0116 497 5700 and selecting option 1. All other children in clinical risk groups aged 5 and over, those 65 and over and all staff can book their appointments at an LRI clinic by using the National Booking Service or by calling 119.  

graphic showing a range of people that are eligible to have their autumn Covid-19 and flu vaccines this autumn and winter

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)

From 1 September 2024 the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine will be available to help protect young babies and older people from becoming seriously unwell from RSV.

Who is eligible for the new vaccine:

  • All pregnant women from 28 weeks pregnancy until delivery.
  • Older adults aged 75-79.


Where can I get the RSV vaccine in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland:

If you are currently pregnant there are several ways in which you can get the RSV vaccine this autumn. You can:

  • Visit one of the mobile vaccination clinics across LLR. Mobile vaccination clinics offer all eligible people the opportunity to get vaccinated without booking an appointment and to walk-in when suitable for them. To view a full list of upcoming clinics, visit: leicesterleicestershireandrutland.icb.nhs.uk/vaccinations/
  • Attend one of the open access vaccination clinics in the antenatal departments at either the Leicester Royal Infirmary or the Leicester General Hospital every weekday, 9:00am until 4:30pm, starting from Monday 16 September 2024.
  • Alternatively, you can access the vaccination from your GP practice.

*If you are pregnant and need any further information about the RSV vaccine you can speak to your midwife.

Older adults will be contacted by their GP practice to get vaccinated, but all eligible adults can also attend any of the mobile vaccination walk-in clinics.

Severe RSV is most common in infants under 1 years old. Babies are particularly vulnerable to RSV lung infections as they have small airways. RSV infection in infants can cause a condition called bronchiolitis which is inflammation and blockage of the small air tubes in the lung. Infants with severe bronchiolitis may need intensive care and the infection can be fatal.

During pregnancy the new vaccine boosts women’s immune systems to make antibodies which are then passed through the placenta to help protect the baby from RSV from birth onwards.

Vaccination reduces the risk of severe RSV lung infection by around 70% in the first six months of life.

Based on a recent study in the Lancet, in the East Midlands the new programme could prevent 388 hospital admissions and 1163 A&E attendances for infants each year – a critical, life-saving step forward to help front line staff prepare for increased winter pressures.

Find out more about the RSV vaccination.

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