Half of those under 30 in England vaccinated against Covid after the weekend “catch a jab” Bedford News

Half of all adults under 30 in England will have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine by Sunday (June 26), the NHS said.

The huge achievement comes as hundreds of walk-in vaccination sites opened across the country over the weekend in a bid to encourage more people to come forward for their vaccine.

More than 4.2 million people between the ages of 18 and 29 have been vaccinated against Covid-19 after the deployment opened to all age groups across England.

The figures come as hundreds of walk-in vaccination sites opened across the country over the weekend as part of a ‘grab and jab’ campaign to increase the number of jabs amid rising rates. cases of Covid-19.

All adults over 18 can use a new online search tool to enter their postal code to find the nearest walk-in vaccination site.

Drop-in centers are open to adults having their first dose of vaccine, but people over 40 who had their vaccine at least eight weeks ago and those under 40 who had their vaccine eight weeks ago at least 12 weeks, can go for their second dose.

Anyone who attends a walk-in center for their first dose this weekend will see their updated vaccination record online and can then make an appointment for their second dose using the NHS national booking system.

More than a million vaccination bookings were made between Monday and Wednesday this week and the NHS is reaching out to people aged 40 and over to advance their second dose according to updated guidelines.

Dr Nikki Kanani, director of primary care at NHS England, praised the “incredible” progress made in the roll-out of vaccination.

She said: “The adoption we have seen among 18-29 year olds over the past week shows how much young adults – like all those who came before them – recognize the importance of protecting themselves, as the NHS continues to deliver the largest and fastest vaccination program in history at a phenomenal rate.

“NHS teams and their local partners are working hard this weekend to vaccinate as many people as possible at convenient walk-in sites across the country, so if you’re 18 and over, go- y and ‘take a jab’ – with every shot in one arm, we’re one step closer to our summer freedoms. ”

Vaccine Minister Nadhim Zahawi called the figures a “phenomenal achievement”, adding that it is “fantastic” that so many young people are showing up for vaccinations.

He said: ‘I would like to recognize the Herculean efforts of everyone who works tirelessly to vaccinate as many people as quickly as possible and I would like to thank all NHS staff, volunteers, local authorities and government officials for their commitment.

“Vaccines are the way out of this pandemic and I urge everyone – regardless of age, religion or belief – to get vaccinated so that we can defeat this virus and reclaim all of our lost freedoms. “

The ‘grab a jab’ campaign comes as the UK recorded another 15,810 laboratory-confirmed Covid-19 cases as of 9 a.m. on Friday (June 25). This is a 50% increase from the 10,476 new cases reported a week earlier.

A total of 64,089,251 vaccinations took place in England between December 8 and June 25, including the first and second doses, according to figures released by NHS England on Saturday (June 26).

NHS England said 36,944,843 were first doses, an increase of 177,515 the day before, while 27,144,408 were second doses, marking an increase of 133,375.

More than four in five adults have now received their first vaccine and more than 60% of people are now fully vaccinated.