wrans/answers2025-01-16 conversation_49
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-16)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-16 conversation_49

Dr Luke Evans:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had recent discussions with NHS England on flu vaccine uptake among staff working in (a) the NHS and (b) social care settings. \p Andrew Gwynne: The Department works closely with the UK Health Security Agency and NHS England to encourage everyone who is eligible to get their flu vaccine. This is supported by a national Get Winter Strong marketing campaign to encourage uptake of the flu vaccine.

For the autumn 2024 flu vaccination programme, NHS England has provided a range of resources and tools to support the vaccination offer to frontline health and social care workers. For example, National Health Service payslips were used to encourage eligible colleagues to get their vaccines, as were NHS social media channels, which included videos from spokespeople, including the Chief Nursing Officer for England, and resources and messages have been shared through established frontline health and care worker networks, including unions and representative bodies.

There is also a comprehensive range of information leaflets, promotional materials, and other resources to inform members of the public and health care professionals. This includes leaflets translated into over 30 languages, and available in easy read and large print formats, braille, and British Sign Language. These are available at the following link:

https://www.healthpublications.gov.uk/Home.html

In addition, improved reporting via NHS England’s Federated Data Platform is providing more detailed regional and integrated care board (ICB) level uptake intelligence than has been possible in previous campaigns. ICBs are being encouraged to work with the highest performing trusts in their region to share best practice and lessons learned, and to provide additional support for those providers where uptake is low. The UKHSA publishes weekly data on flu vaccine uptake in eligible groups, which is available at the following link:

www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-flu-and-covid-19-surveillance-reports-2024-to-2025-season

The following table shows the latest data covering vaccination from 2021/22 up to 5 January 2025, as a percentage and broken down by patient group, and the comparative periods in previous years:

Patient group

2024/25

2023/24

2022/23

2021/22

65-year-olds and over

73.8%

77.1%

78.7%

82.5%

At risk

38.6%

40.4%

46.7%

53.0%

Pregnant women

33.8%

31.0%

33.6%

39.8%

Two-year-olds

40.9%

43.2%

40.4%

48.7%

Three-year-olds

42.5%

43.5%

42.9%

50.7%

The data for school aged children and health care worker vaccine uptake is published monthly, and is available, respectively, at the following two links:   www.gov.uk/government/statistics/seasonal-influenza-vaccine-uptake-in-children-of-school-age-monthly-data-2024-to-2025  www.gov.uk/government/statistics/seasonal-influenza-and-covid-19-vaccine-uptake-in-frontline-healthcare-workers-monthly-data-2024-to-2025

The following table summarises the latest data on vaccination from 2021/22 up to 30 November 2024, for children in primary and secondary school and for health care workers:

Cohort

2024/25

2023/24

2022/23

2021/22

Primary school

49.1%

48.1%

48.0%

39.5%

Secondary school

32.6%

29.5%

N/A

26.2%

Health care workers

32.2%

38.5%

41.8%

52.5%

Adult social care setting vaccine uptake is published monthly, and is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/monthly-statistics-for-adult-social-care-england#latest-report

This year there was less time to complete vaccinations as the campaign for all adults, apart from pregnant women, started in early October 2024 rather than in September, as in previous years. This was based on the advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, that it is better to vaccinate closer to when flu circulates because of waning vaccine effectiveness.

It should be noted that for most eligible groups, flu vaccination reached the highest levels of uptake ever achieved in the programme during the pandemic, but has dropped back since then in adults.