Get ready to vaccinate kids as young as 12, Sajid Javid tells NHS bosses

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Sajid Javid last night told the NHS to start preparing to jab children as young as 12 as Sage committee scientists warned a ‘large’ Covid wave was likely to hit schools next month.

The Health Secretary said he was putting plans in place so the country was ‘ready to hit the ground running’ if the JCVI – the Government’s independent advisers – gave the go-ahead to jab younger children.

The NHS has been told to start recruiting and training staff to go into schools to give pupils Covid jabs early next term, if they’re approved. Headteachers will be told to prepare space where the vaccines can be given or be ready to allow pupils time out of lessons to get the jab elsewhere.

It is the clearest signal yet that ministers expect the jab for younger children to be approved imminently.

It came as experts warned the Government to plan for a surge in infections at the end of September, following the return of children from the summer holidays. Their fears were detailed in a document from the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Modelling, Operational sub-group (SPI-M-O). 

Its advisers said it was highly likely there would be an exponential increase in infections among school-aged children after classes returned. 

And they noted that measures in place before the new term, such as bubbles and stricter rules on isolating, would no longer apply.

Mr Javid said it was important for the NHS and schools to be prepared.

He said offering all teenagers a coronavirus jab will ‘solidify our wall of protection’ against the disease in a move that will pile pressure on the JCVI to approve the move.

Writing in The Times, Mr Javid said that with the rise of the Delta variant, ‘the more the population is protected by a vaccine, the more protection society as a whole will have from Covid-19’. 

The Department of Health stressed parental consent will be sought before vaccinating children, although it is unclear if children can overrule their parents.

It also emerged last night that secondary school and college pupils will need to wear face masks in communal areas outside of their classrooms in areas of the south-west of England, as extra support was pledged in response to a rise in coronavirus cases.  

The Department of Health said that from Friday, Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly, Devon, Plymouth and Torbay local authority areas will get help to increase vaccine and testing uptake, and deliver public health messaging.

The vaccine is available for those aged 16 and over or for 12 to 15-year-olds who are most at risk from Covid. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has yet to advise lowering the age due to concerns the Pfizer jab may be linked to a rare form of heart inflammation. 

But other scientists have accused the panel of dithering and called for children to be jabbed immediately.

Schools and colleges in England are being encouraged to maintain increased hygiene and ventilation from September, but year group ‘bubbles’ and face-covering requirements have been removed. 

Unions have called for more action to ensure schools are kept as safe as possible.

Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said current safety requirements were ‘not sufficient’ to prevent a rise in cases. 

He added: ‘To prevent a sharp rise in cases, the watchwords must be ventilation, air filtration, masks, vaccines and vigilance.’

The Government yesterday reported a further 100 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid, and there have been a further 38,046 cases.

Schools and colleges in England are being encouraged to maintain increased hygiene and ventilation from September, but year group ‘bubbles’ and face-covering requirements have been removed. 

Unions have called for more action to ensure schools are kept as safe as possible and education is not disrupted further.

Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said current safety requirements were ‘not sufficient’ to prevent a rise in cases. 

He added: ‘To prevent a sharp rise in cases, the watchwords must be ventilation, air filtration, masks, vaccines and vigilance.’

The Government yesterday reported a further 100 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid, and there have been a further 38,046 cases.

 

 

Britain’s daily Covid cases rise by 2% in a week to 38,046 as hospitalisations creep up by 10% but deaths drop by 12.5% to 100

Britain’s daily coronavirus cases rose by just two per cent in a week yesterday as another 38,046 positive tests were recorded across the home nations.

The figure, published by the Department of Health, included a record-high of 6,800 in Scotland, which has seen infections spiral since children returned to school last week.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon today insisted officials were not considering a circuit-breaker lockdown north of the border, to stem the surge in infections.

Meanwhile, hospitalisations — which lag behind cases because of how long it can take for the infected to become seriously ill — crept up by another 10.5 per cent. Some 948 patients were admitted to hospital on August 23, the most recent day figures are available for.

Deaths fell by 12.3 per cent on the week before, the statistics also showed. A further 100 victims were added to the Government’s official toll today, compared to 114 last week.

It comes amid fears the bank holiday weekend will trigger a spike in cases, which has prompted health chiefs to urge youngsters to stay safe at festivals such as Reading and Leeds.

And there are fears the return of schools will trigger another spike, with SAGE papers today warning of ‘high levels’ of Covid in classrooms by the end of September.

Meanwhile, data today revealed England’s outbreak was already growing before the bank holiday weekend, with the R rate now above one and up to one in 70 people infected on any given day last week.

It comes as: 

The official daily figures, which are updated every day, revealed 38,046 people tested positive for Covid. 

The latest number brings the rolling seven-day average to 34,177 — the highest it has been in a month.

Meanwhile, 6,853 infections were recorded in Scotland, as cases continue to reach new highs.

Prior to the latest peak in infections, cases reached a high of 3,922 in Scotland on June 28 in the midst of the third wave, which coincided with the Euro 2020 football tournament.

The new hospitalisation figures bring the rolling seven-day average to 894 — the highest figure since July 27.

And the number of Covid fatalities recorded in the UK — which includes everyone who died within 28 days of testing positive for the virus — stayed flat.

Deaths linked with the coronavirus fell sharply after the peak at the beginning of the year — when the UK recorded 1,359 deaths in a single day on January 19 — due to the lockdown.

Fatalities then remained low due to the success of the vaccine rollout, but began ticking upwards in July as restrictions eased.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has ‘privately accepted’ that 50,000 people will die from Covid a year — some 137 deaths a day, it was revealed today. The i reported that the Prime Minister will only consider a lockdown if fatalities breach that threshold. 

Meanwhile, 55,140 first vaccine doses were dishes out today and 114,936 second doses were administered. Some 47.9million over-16s (88.2 per cent) have now had their first dose, while 42.3m (78 per cent) are fully immunised.   

It comes as data from the UK Health Security Agency revealed the R rate in England may be as high as 1.1 nationally and reaching 1.2 in parts of the country.

The figure can be used as a guide as a general trend of the outbreak in the country, with a rate above one meaning the outbreak is growing.

An R rate of 1 to 1.1 means on average, every 10 infected with Covid will pass the virus on to 10 or 11 others. 

And the pandemic growth rate in England is between zero and two per cent, according to the HSA, meaning the number of new infections could be rising by two per cent every day.

But the figures represent the transmission of the virus two to three weeks earlier, giving a rearview mirror view of the outbreak.

This is because of the delay in someone being infected, developing Covid symptoms and requiring NHS care.

The latest figures reveal the South West as the worst-hit region, where the R rate was as high as 1.2 and cases were growing by four per cent every day.

The rate also reached 1.2 in the East and South East, while cases were growing by three per cent a day in those areas.

And the gold-standard Office for National Statistics (ONS) data — which is used by ministers to track the state of the outbreak — showed infection levels increased across the UK.

In England, the proportion of people testing positive for Covid continued to be highest in Yorkshire and the Humber (1.8 per cent) and the North West (1.6 per cent).

In London, 1.5 per cent of people were infected in the most recent week, compared to 1.4 per cent one week earlier.

Cases were also on the rise in the East Midlands (1.4 per cent), the South East (1.3 per cent) and West Midlands (to 1.3 per cent).

Meanwhile, infection levels stayed static in the North East (1.3 per cent) and dropped in the East of England (1.2 per cent) and the South West (0.9 per cent). 

And 3.5 per cent of 16 to 24-year-old tested positive, the highest out of any age group, with cases shooting up from 2.9 per cent one week earlier.

The figure equates to one in 30 people in the age group testing positive.

And cases also increased among 11 to 15-year-olds, with 2.5 per cent testing positive, compared to 2.3 per cent in the previous seven days.

Cases fell among those aged 25 to 34, as well as in children aged two to 10, but increased in all age groups over 35.

It comes as the UK is set to have its biggest weekend of live music in two years, with more than 100,000 people attending Reading and Leeds music festivals and some 40,000 going to All Points East in London. 

Susan Hopkins, PHE strategy response director and Test and Trace Chief Medical Advisor said: ‘Festivals are a great opportunity for people to come together after what has been an incredibly difficult year and we want everyone to enjoy themselves.

‘However, it’s important to know that at least 1 in 50 young people currently have Covid.

‘Therefore, do a test before you go, wear a face covering if you’re travelling to and from the festival if you’re using public transport and socialise outside as much as possible.

‘If you test positive or have any symptoms then do not attend.’

She added: ‘It’s especially important to be cautious when you leave the festival and when you get home as you may well have caught Covid while you’ve been away.

‘Make sure you take an LFD test when you get home and then test twice a week after having mixed with a large group of people, as you could have Covid without having symptoms.

‘Try and avoid seeing older or more vulnerable relatives so that you don’t pass anything on.’

Meanwhile, Covid infections increased across the rest of the UK.

In Scotland, 36,700 people tested positive for the virus on any given day in the week ending August 20, equating to 0.7 per cent of people, or one case per 140 people.

Seven days earlier, on the week ending August 14, just 25,900 were infected, equating to one in 200 people. 

It follows schools reopening across Scotland for the autumn term last week. In England and Wales, schools broke up later, so do not return until next week.

The rising figures caused Ms Sturgeon to warn that Scots could be dragged back into tougher coronavirus restrictions amid the biggest surge in cases since the beginning of the pandemic.

The First Minister earlier this week raised the prospect of reintroducing some curbs despite the successful vaccine rollout.

She also said that existing regulations, including mandatory face masks and limits on capacities at major events, are likely to be extended again next week.

And cases also appeared to be on the rise in Wales, with 25,200 people being infected in the most recent week, compared to 23,500 in the previous set of figures.

Last week, one in 120 people in the country were infected with Covid, around 0.83 per cent of the population, the ONS estimated.

Infection rates were highest in Northern Ireland, where 2.36 per cent of the population tested positive, around one in every 40 individuals. Some 43,300 people were infected, up from 35,300 one week earlier. 

But the ONS warned the data for Scotland and Northern Ireland is less certain than England, because the sample size of participants is smaller. 

Its figures are also a lagging indicator due to how the estimates are made. People can test positive for several weeks after getting infected. 

Whereas official daily figures look at new cases, and offer the most up-to-date view of the true state of the outbreak.

Professor Kevin McConway, an expert in applied statistics at The Open University, said the ONS figures are ‘a bit depressing’ but not surprising, as the official daily figures already confirmed cases were rising across the UK throughout August.

But it’s important to see infection rates confirmed in the ONS estimates, because the results come from a representative sample of people who are tested only to measure the progress of the pandemic, he noted.

So the data is not affected by changes in who is being routinely tested, which can bias the dashboard counts, Professor McConway said.

He said: ‘Infection levels are really high in England and in Northern Ireland. They are quite a lot lower in Wales and in Scotland, but confirmed case numbers on the dashboard have been rising quickly in both of those countries recently, so things look problematic there too.’

‘It’s just about possible that the reopening might have contributed a bit to the increase in infections [in Scotland], but the effect on the latest figures is unlikely to be large, given that it generally takes a few days after an infection contact for the infection to become detectable.

‘It’s true that vaccines have much reduced the risk that someone will end up in hospital or die, if they become infected with the virus. But they haven’t reduced the risk to zero. 

‘The last time that infections were at the level they now are in England, according to the [ONS figures], was the end of January.’

At that point, there were 2,300 hospital admissions and 1,100 deaths linked with the virus, while now there are around 770 admissions and 80 fatalities, Professor McConway said.  

He added: ‘Obviously the position is better than it was at the end of January – but it’s still not good, and the latest dashboard figures and models indicate that things are going to get worse in the short term. 

‘What I’d like to hear is an explanation of what policy actions are being taken by the UK Government to take this into account, with an explanation of the choices that have been made, even if the choice is not to change anything. 

‘I’ve heard very little about policy on Covid for England recently, apart from the welcome encouragement for people to get vaccinated, and some changes in the rules for foreign travel. What’s the plan, please?’