£8m funding to support schools with in-school vaccination programme

The Department for Education is to distribute a total of £8 million in funding from NHS England to support secondary schools with the roll out of the in-school vaccination programme for young people – hosting NHS vaccination teams and passing on materials about vaccination.

This comes as over 50% of 12-15-year-olds – over 1.5 million people – have now had at least one dose of the vaccine.

Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said: "Face-to-face education for all students has consistently been my priority, and that is why I am pleased to further strengthen the tools available to schools to manage transmission of the virus, including funding air cleaning units for the small number of classrooms that need them due to poor ventilation, and providing additional NHS funding to free up staff time to engage with the vaccination programme for young people.

"My message remains the same as ever – testing, ventilation and vaccinations are our best weapons against the virus – keep testing, and get your vaccination as soon as possible."

NHS vaccination lead for 12-to-15s Nick Hulme said: "The additional £8 million in investment from the NHS will aim to further support schools to roll out the vaccine.

"It is vitally important that families get their young ones protected - either in school, through an appointment booked online at a vaccine centre or at one of hundreds of walk-in sites."

Further information will be provided to schools shortly with further details on how the NHS funding for vaccination support will be distributed.

The funding for schools to continue to support the vaccine programme will provide secondary schools, special schools and alternative provision with a one-off payment of £1,000 with an additional uplift based on pupil numbers.