Commenting on the decision of the Chief Medical Officers of
England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to recommend the
vaccination of 12-15 year olds, Dr Mary Bousted, Joint General
Secretary of the National Education Union, said:
"The decision by the Chief Medical Officers to encourage the take
up of vaccinations by 12-15 year olds will be another tool to
help pupils sustain their access to education throughout the
autumn and winter.
"While we recognise that a decision on vaccinating children
needed careful evidential judgement, it would have been better if
a decision could have been made earlier during the summer
holidays. It will now be well into the autumn before the impact
of the vaccination programme will be felt. Schools must be given
timely and clear guidance for the next steps. It is an NHS
responsibility to carry out vaccinations on school sites, though
schools are used to being sites for the vaccination program. And
it is incumbent on the Department for Education to make clear and
usable procedures for the necessary parental consent. This is not
the time for yet more incoherent guidance from Government.
"While vaccination is not needed generally to protect children
and young people from severe illness, it will suppress
transmission, but it is not the only story. There is still an
important role for other mitigations, particularly ventilation
and face coverings. So far Government have been slow to roll out
the promised CO2 monitors which will at least help schools and
colleges to identify where ventilation is poor.”
