Only half of East Midlands primary school children had flu vaccine last year – leaving thousands unprotected

Credit: Onclusive News for UKHSA

East Midlands parents are being urged to protect their children against flu and keep more vulnerable family members healthy this winter by getting their children vaccinated.

Last winter (2025-26), only 52.8% of primary school children in the East Midlands received a flu vaccine – slightly down on the previous winter (2024-25), when uptake was 52.9%.

Nationally, just 55.5% of primary school children – around 2.5 million out of a total of the 4.5 million eligible – were protected from flu in winter 2025-26. While uptake in all primary school-aged children, reception to year 6, was slightly up on the previous winter (54.5% for 2024-25), it was well below levels (over 60%) seen before the COVID-19 pandemic (winter of 2019 -20).

The youngest primary school aged children have been eligible for a nose-spray flu vaccine since the 2014 to 2015 season. This expanded to all primary school-aged children by the 2019 to 2020 season. Since the peak in 2020-21 (62.5%), uptake has been lower for the past several years.

Vaccination offers the best protection against flu and usually has a better immune response in children, with evidence from last year’s flu season showing strong vaccine effectiveness for school aged children, aged 2 to 17 years. The vaccine is estimated to have prevented:

• 52% of children from having to visit their GP, and
• 68% from being hospitalised

UKHSA is reminding parents of the importance of vaccination and helping to protect their children against flu; and to ensure consent forms are returned in good time, so their children do not miss out when school immunisation teams visit.

Children’s flu vaccinations will start in some schools from this week and local immunisation teams will move from school to school across their region.

Getting vaccinated in November will still protect children before flu usually peaks in December and January. It’s best to get vaccinated before flu starts circulating widely.

Flu can be very serious for some younger children and puts many thousands in hospital every year. Younger children, aged 2 and 3 years, are also able to receive a flu vaccine from their GP surgery.

Susanne Howes, Consultant in Health Protection for UKHSA East Midlands, said: “Younger children are at higher risk of developing complications from flu and being hospitalised. Ensuring they are vaccinated against flu with a painless and easy nose spray not only helps to protect them, but also stops them spreading it into the wider community and to those who may be even more vulnerable, such as younger siblings and grandparents.

“That’s why we are so concerned that flu vaccine uptake among children in primary schools is too low, leaving thousands unprotected. It’s vital we turn this around.

“This will take a concerted effort with parents returning consent forms in good time along with school vaccinations teams and head teachers working together to deliver the vaccine programme. It’s important we all come together to help protect children and give them the best start to thrive in school.”

Making sure children are vaccinated helps to:
1. Protect your child against flu and serious complications such as bronchitis and pneumonia
2. stop children spreading flu – protecting you, your family and friends, in particular those more vulnerable and at greater risk such as younger siblings and grandparents
3. keep children in school, or accessing education if home schooled, so they can continue to learn and develop
4. avoid costs – if your child gets flu, you may have to take time off work or arrange alternative childcare

Parents should also be aware that:

• No injection is needed – most children have the nasal spray which is painless and easy. A vaccine injection is also available which does not contain gelatine from pigs
• The nasal spray has been given to millions of children worldwide and has an excellent safety record

Children eligible for the flu vaccine include:

• children aged 2 to 3 years old on 31 August in 2026
• all primary school-aged children (reception to year 6)
• secondary school-aged children (year 7 to year 11)
• children aged 6 months and older with long-term health conditions

Similar to the flu vaccine, there has been a drop in uptake of all of the routine childhood vaccinations, which protect children against a wide range of serious diseases. It is important children are up to date with all their vaccinations before starting primary school, particularly the MMRV or MMR vaccine protecting against measles, mumps, rubella and chicken pox (varicella).

High vaccine uptake is needed to help prevent outbreaks and the spread of serious infections, including measles, which is highly infectious particularly in closed environments like schools.

While children are encouraged to stay in education or childcare with symptoms such as a runny nose, sore throat or slight cough (if otherwise well and do not have a high temperature), children should stay home from school or nursery if they’re displaying the following symptoms:

• If your child has a fever and is unwell, they should stay home from school or nursery until the fever has passed and they are well enough to attend
• If your child has diarrhoea and/or vomiting, they should stay off school or nursery for at least 48 hours after their symptoms clear up – this will help stop the spread of stomach bugs

Encouraging good hand-washing and respiratory habits is one of the most effective ways to stop the spread of bugs; and using a tissue to catch coughs and sneezes, binning it and then washing hands will help prevent infection from spreading.