Menningtis - vaccines that are given at school

Many of you will be aware of a recent Meningitis outbreak in Kent which has been covered widely in the media.

We’ve had a few calls from parents who are unsure about their children’s vaccinations that they have had in school.

So we would like to share some key points relating to the vaccines:

🔴MenACWY vaccine (given in Year 9 ): – Protects against groups A, C, W, Y – Offered to teenagers aged 13-15 years old as part of the NHS school immunisation programme. If missed at school, is available at some GP surgery for those aged 16-25 years old

🔴Checking your child’s vaccines that they had in school. We do not hold this information. Please contact EA Community and School Age Immunisation Service. They can be contacted on 0300 555 5055 opt 3, for Suffolk and north east Essex team and they will be able to advise.

🔴MenB vaccine: – Protects against group B (the strain involved in the outbreak in Kent) – Offered to babies as part of the NHS childhood immunisations programme – given at 8 weeks, 12 weeks and 1 years old (since 2015) – Not routinely available for older children or adults on the NHS; only being offered to high-risk groups in targeted areas and therefore not available at our GP surgery for people over 2 years old – Available at a cost from private providers such as pharmacies, please be aware there is currently a national shortage

🔴Current situation (18th March 2026): – Outbreak is localised (Kent) – Targeted NHS vaccination campaign underway for high-risk groups in Kent – No changes to vaccination guidance in Suffolk – Further information from the UK Health Security Agency is available here: https://ukhsa.blog.gov.uk/2026/03/18/meningitis-b-outbreak-what-you-need-to-know/ 

🔴What to do: – Be aware of the symptoms (see poster below) and seek urgent medical help if you have any concerns