Marked drop in meningitis jab for Black Country and Staffordshire pupils

Now health officials are warning that some young people are at risk of falling ill with the condition and blood poisoning after a fall in vaccine coverage among teenagers, aged 14-15, across the country.

The UK Health Security Agency figures show 65.9 per cent of Year Nine pupils in Wolverhampton got the MenACWY vaccine which protects against four strains of the meningococcal bacteria in the 2021-22 academic year.

This highlights a significant fall from 90.1 per cent in 2018-19 the last academic year before the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

In Staffordshire 73.3 per cent of pupils in the county got the vaccine, a fall from 89.9 per cent in 2018-19.

In Walsall 57.2 per cent had it, a fall from 83.9 per cent. In Dudley 83.2 per cent had it, a fall from 95.6 per cent. In Sandwell 63.2 per cent had it, a fall of 86.9 per cent.

Across England uptake of the vaccine has fallen from 88 per cent in 2018-19 to just 69.2 per cent last year.

The agency's consultant epidemiologist Dr Vanessa Saliba said: “In recent years we have seen vaccine uptake fall due to the challenges posed by the pandemic. Many young people who missed out on their vaccinations have already been caught up, but more needs to be done to ensure all those eligible are vaccinated.

“These vaccines offer the best protection as young people start their journey into adulthood and mixing more widely, whether going to college, starting work, travelling or going to summer festivals.”

There has also been a national decline in uptake for the three-in-one vaccine which protects against tetanus, diphtheria and polio. It fell from 87.6 per cent in the same age group pre-pandemic to 69 per cent last year.

In Wolverhampton, uptake of that booster jab dropped from 90.3 per cent in the last pre-pandemic school year to 66.1 per cent last year. In Walsall uptake dropped from 83.9 per cent to 57.2 per cent in the same period. In Dudley uptake dropped from 95 per cent to 82.9 per cent. In Sandwell uptake dropped from 87.4 per cent in the last pre- to 65.7 per cent.

Health minister Maria Caulfield said: "It’s incredibly important for children to stay up to date with routine vaccinations as this remains one of our best defences against infectious diseases, not just for the person being vaccinated but for their family, friends and those around them."

She is also calling on parents to speak to school nurses, school immunisation teams or GP surgeries to book an appointment if their children are not vaccinated.

International children’s body Unicef adds that about 67 million children around the world did not receive routine jabs between 2019 and 2021. It adds that overall support for vaccines remains “relatively strong”, but several factors suggest the “threat of vaccine hesitancy may be growing”.