Booster jabs now available from walk-in centres across England

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Wednesday 27th October 2021

Anyone who is eligible for a booster jab in England can now visit a drop-in centre without an appointment. Previously, those who were eligible had to make an appointment for the third vaccine. Currently, boosters are available for over 50’s and other priority groups, including health and social care workers, younger adults with underlying health problems and adults who live with vulnerable people. 

Providing access to walk-in centres for booster vaccines will hopefully help to encourage those who haven’t yet had their third injection to find a suitable location and time to get their jab. The NHS is working to increase capacity, as more and more people become eligible for the third jab, which is given six months after the second dose. Walk-in centres offer individuals more flexibility and may be particularly useful for those who work shifts. 

Statistics suggest that over 8 million people in the UK, including 6 million adults in England, have had a booster vaccine and another 30 million will be eligible for booster vaccines in the coming weeks. Now, patients can choose whether to make an appointment at a local centre or to drop into a walk-in facility if it suits them better. Details of walk-in sessions are available on the NHS website via the online walk-in finder tool. 

As the NHS announces that booster vaccines are available from walk-in centres, health chiefs and those involved in the vaccination programme have encouraged those who haven’t yet had their booster and meet eligibility criteria to come forward. The third jab provides additional protection by boosting immunity and is designed to top up immunity as it starts to wane around six months after the second dose. 

Dr Nikki Kanani, deputy lead for the Covid-19 NHS vaccination programme and a practising GP, urged all those who are eligible for their booster now to have the third vaccine, describing it as “really important protection ahead of what we will know will be a challenging winter.”