Important information about coronavirus (COVID-19)
The latest information about COVID-19 is available on the NHS website at www.nhs.uk/coronavirus (opens in a new window).
COVID-19 vaccines
Spring booster vaccinations
People aged 75 and over, care home residents and people aged 12 and over with weakened immune systems are being offered a spring booster of the COVID-19 vaccinations. This follows the recommendation from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) that an extra dose should be offered to these groups to make sure people at greatest risk from the symptoms of COVID-19 continue to have high levels of protection.
Information about boosters in general is available further down this page.
All children aged 5-11 are now being offered COVID-19 vaccinations, in line with the latest advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). As well as protecting children against serious COVID infection and Long COVID, this will reduce the risk of children passing the infection on to others.
Appointments are available at selected vaccination centres and community pharmacies and can be booked online at www.nhs.uk/covidvaccine (opens in new window) or by calling 119, free of charge. Some GP vaccination services are also offering appointments for their patients in this age group but please do not contact your practice unless you are invited to make an appointment.
All vaccination centres offering the jab to this age group have gone through additional checks and have staff who are experienced in vaccinating children. They will offer a child-friendly environment for families with young children and longer appointment times to help put children at ease.
Children in this age group who are at risk of serious illness, or those living with someone who immunosuppressed, are already being offered the vaccination. they will have two doses of vaccine, eight weeks apart.
Further information can be found by clicking on the following links (all open in a new window):
Dr Bnar Talabani explains why children are being offered the vaccine
COVID-19 vaccination: A guide for parents of children aged 5 to 11
JCVI statement on vaccination of children aged 5 to 11 years old
- Two paediatric (children’s) doses of the vaccine
- Allow at least eight weeks between each dose
If your child has had COVID-19 you must allow at least four weeks from when either symptoms started or they tested positive before they can have their vaccination.
- Two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine (including children who turn 12 on the date of vaccination). One dose gives good protection against becoming seriously ill. The second dose gives stronger and longer-lasting protection against COVID-19
- Most children can have their second dose from 12 weeks after their first dose
If your child has tested positive for COVID-19 and is not at high risk of serious illness from the virus, they will need to wait for 12 weeks from the date of their positive test or when symptoms started before they can have their vaccination.
- Two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine plus a booster
- Allow at least 12 weeks between doses
If you have tested positive for COVID-19 and are not at high risk of serious illness from the virus, you will need to wait for 12 weeks from the date of your positive test before you can have your vaccination.
- Two doses plus a booster
- Allow at least eight weeks between first and second doses
- You will be invited to have your booster two months after the date of your second vaccination
- You can make an online appointment for a date that is three months after your second vaccination. Or you can visit a walk-in clinic if you prefer
If you have tested positive for COVID-19 or have symptoms and are not at high risk of serious illness from the virus, you will need to wait for four weeks (28 days) before you can have your vaccination.
- Two doses followed by a first booster and a spring booster
- Allow at least eight weeks between first and second doses
- You will be invited to have your first booster two months after the date of your second vaccination
- You can make an online appointment for a date that is three months after your second vaccination. Or you can visit a walk-in clinic if you prefer
- You will receive an invitation to have your spring booster between Monday 21 March and early summer, depending on when you had your last booster
- Not all GP services are offering spring boosters, so please only get in touch with your GP if you receive an invitation from the practice
People are being prioritised for spring boosters according to:
- when you had your previous booster
- your clinical needs
so please wait to hear and do not contact your GP practice or other NHS services.
If you haven’t had your previous booster, you can visit www.nhs.uk/covid-booster (opens in new window) or call 119 to book an appointment, or click on the following link for details of local walk-in clinics (opens in new window).
- Three vaccinations PLUS the booster dose and the spring booster. This is because evidence shows you may not have responded as well to your first and second vaccinations as other people have, and therefore have less protection against COVID-19
- Your GP or consultant will advise when is the best time for you to have your vaccinations and you will be contacted
- There should be at least eight weeks between doses one, two and three and 12 weeks between dose three and your booster, unless otherwise advised by a specialist
You are recommended to wait for 14 days after your vaccinations before you meet with people.
Boosters
The COVID-19 vaccinations cannot protect you from catching the virus. However, having the COVID-19 booster will help to improve and extend the protection against serious illness and hospitalisation provided by your first doses of the vaccine.
- Most people should have their booster three months after their second vaccination.
- Immunosuppressed people should have their booster three months after their third vaccination.
- You will be contacted by the NHS two months after your second vaccination to let you know that you can book your booster on the NHS national booking service in a month’s time.
- If you prefer to visit a walk-in clinic for your booster, you will be able to do this one month after you hear from the NHS.
It is extremely important that if you are eligible for a booster vaccination you have one, to help you to avoid becoming seriously ill if you catch COVID-19.
Walk-in vaccination clinics
Walk-in vaccination clinics offer first, second and booster doses during the day, evening and at weekends. Details of the dates, addresses, minimum ages for vaccinations and the types of vaccinations offered at walk-in sites are published on the NHS website (opens in new window). These details are updated daily and are published for the week ahead.
You can visit the walk-in centre without having:
- an appointment
- an NHS number
- being registered with a GP.
COVID-19 symptoms and what you should do
- High temperature. This means that you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature).
- A new continuous cough. This means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or three or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual).
- A loss of change to your sense of smell or taste. This means you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal.
Most people have at least one of these symptoms. Click on the following link for information about COVID-19 symptoms in children on the nhs.uk website (opens in new window)
Try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people if you:
- have any symptoms of COVID-19, (opens in a news window) and have a high temperature or you do not feel well enough to go to work or do your normal activities
- have tested positive for COVID-19 – this means it’s very likely you have the virus
You should avoid being in close contact with people at higher risk from COVID-19 (opens in a new window.) This is particularly important if their immune system means they’re at higher risk of serious illness from COVID-19, even if they’ve had a COVID-19 vaccine.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) tests are no longer free for most people. Most people are no longer advised to get tested. Find out:
- what to do if you have COVID-19 symptoms or have tested positive for COVID-19 (opens in a new window)
- what to do if you’ve been in close contact with someone with COVID-19 (opens on a new window)
- how to avoid catching and spreading COVID-19 (opens in a new window)
Recovery after COVID-19
Most people make a full recovery within 12 weeks of infection, but for some it can take longer and the symptoms may last for weeks or months. This is sometimes called ‘post-COVID-19 syndrome’ or Long-COVID. Recovering from COVID-19 can have a major impact on both your mind and body and it may take some time to come to terms with the after-effects.
There are things you can do to help to understand what has happened and what you might expect as part of your recovery. It is important to know that everybody will experience recovering from COVID-19 differently.
A review by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has revealed the following:
- People who have had one or more doses of a COVID-19 vaccine are less likely to develop Long-COVID than those who remain unvaccinated
- More people with Long-COVID reported they saw an improvement in their symptoms rather than a worsening after vaccination, either immediately or over several weeks
- People with COVID-19 who were vaccinated sooner after diagnosis were much less likely to report Long-COVID symptoms than people who were vaccinated later after diagnosis (allowing for the minimum wait after recovering or testing positive before having the vaccination)
The Your COVID Recovery website (opens in a new window) will help you with this and provide information to support and reassure you and your family and friends.
What to do if you need medical help
Use the 111 online coronavirus service (opens in a new window) if:
- you’re worried about your symptoms
- you’re not sure what to do
Visit the NHS.UK website if you need information about other services (opens in a new window)
Coronavirus (COVID-19) information in other languages
Information about coronavirus (COVID-19) is published in other languages by the independent humanitarian movement ‘Doctors of the World‘ (opens in a new window).
