Guernsey to Offer Meningitis B Vaccines to Young People
A short-term vaccination programme will target teens and students heading to university for the first time this autumn.
Officials in Guernsey have announced a programme to offer young people a vaccine against meningitis B. The plan follows outbreaks of the disease in parts of England earlier this year. It is similar to a larger programme being rolled out across the United Kingdom, where about one million young people will be offered the same vaccine.
Meningitis B is a serious infection that can cause life-threatening illness. Health officials say the disease spreads easily among young people who live in close contact with others, such as in student dormitories. Because of this, the vaccine is being offered to people who are about to start university or move into halls of residence for the first time.
The programme in Guernsey is not open to everyone. It is described as a 'time-limited, cohort offer,' which means it is available only to certain groups of people for a limited time. The main groups who qualify are students in their final year of secondary school who were born between 1 September 2007 and 31 August 2008, and students under the age of 25 who are starting undergraduate higher education for the first time in autumn 2026.
Anyone who has already received two doses of the meningitis B vaccine in the last five years does not need to get it again. Officials want to make sure the vaccine goes to those who have never had it before and are about to be in situations where the disease spreads more easily. Alex Hawkins-Drew, associate director of Guernsey Public Health, said that more details about who is eligible and how to get the vaccine would be shared in the coming weeks.
The decision to launch this programme came after three outbreaks of meningitis B in England. Clusters of cases were found in Kent, Weymouth in Dorset, and Reading in Berkshire. The outbreak in Kent was described as the UK's largest and fastest-growing meningitis B outbreak recorded so far.
People in Guernsey who are eligible can get their two-dose vaccine at Lukis House on The Grange in St Peter Port. Clinic dates include Monday 29 June, Tuesday 30 June, Thursday 2 July, and Saturday 4 July, with different hours on each day. Officials said extra clinics could be added at Lukis House and other locations if there is high demand.
More details will be provided in the coming weeks of eligibility and how those eligible can access the vaccine.
Comprehension quiz preview
1. Where can eligible people in Guernsey get the meningitis B vaccine?
2. How many doses of the meningitis B vaccine will eligible people receive?
3. Which region in England had the UK's largest meningitis B outbreak that helped trigger this programme?