Vaccination coverage: Flu (primary school aged children) - WMCA

Flu vaccine uptake (%) in school aged children from Reception to Year 6 (age 4 to 11 year olds) between 1st September to the end of January.RationaleInfluenza (also known as Flu) is a highly infectious viral illness spread by droplet infection. The flu vaccination is offered to people who are at greater risk of developing serious complications if they catch the flu. The seasonal influenza programme for England is set out in the Annual Flu Letter. Both the flu letter and the flu plan have the support of the Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Chief Pharmaceutical Officer (CPhO), and Director of Nursing.Vaccination coverage is the best indicator of the level of protection a population will have against vaccine-preventable communicable diseases. Immunisation is one of the most effective healthcare interventions available, and flu vaccines can prevent illness and hospital admissions among these groups of people. Increasing the uptake of the flu vaccine among these high-risk groups should also contribute to easing winter pressure on primary care services and hospital admissions. Coverage is closely related to levels of disease. Monitoring coverage identifies possible drops in immunity before levels of disease rise.The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) will continue to provide expert advice and monitoring of public health, including immunisation. NHS England now has responsibility for commissioning the flu programme, and GPs continue to play a key role. NHS England teams will ensure that robust plans are in place locally and that high vaccination uptake levels are reached in the clinical risk groups. For more information, see the Green Book chapter 19 on Influenza.The Annual flu letter sets out the national vaccine uptake ambitions each year. In 2021 to 2022, the national ambition was to achieve at least 70% vaccine uptake in school aged children in Reception to Year 6 (age 4 to 11 years old).Definition of numeratorThe total number of children in the respective eligible age cohort that have received at least one dose of influenza vaccine from 1 September in school, pharmacy, and general practice.Definition of denominatorThe total number of children eligible for influenza vaccination in the LA geography and children educated out of school in the LA geography, defined by child age on 31 AugustCaveatsData for ICBs are estimated from local authority data. In most cases, ICBs are coterminous with local authorities, so the ICB figures are precise. In cases where local authorities cross ICB boundaries, the local authority data are proportionally split between ICBs, based on the population located in each ICB.The affected ICBs are:Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and WiltshireBedfordshire, Luton and Milton KeynesBuckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire WestCambridgeshire and PeterboroughFrimleyHampshire and Isle of WightHertfordshire and West EssexHumber and North YorkshireLancashire and South CumbriaNorfolk and WaveneyNorth East and North CumbriaSuffolk and North East EssexSurrey HeartlandsSussexWest YorkshireRead codes are primarily used for data collection purposes to extract vaccine uptake data for patients who fall into one or more of the designated clinical risk groups. The codes identify individuals at risk and therefore eligible for flu vaccination. However, it is important to note that there may be some individuals with conditions not specified in the recommended risk groups for vaccination, who may be offered influenza vaccine by their GP based on clinical judgement and according to advice contained in the flu letter and Green Book, and thus may fall outside the listed read codes. Therefore, it is important to note that for the reasons mentioned, this data should not be used for GP payment purposes.This collection is regularly submitted for approval from the Data Coordination Board (DCB).