GRAB A COVID-19 JAB THIS WEEKEND & BE SAFE FOR CHRISTMAS
26 November 2021
People in Coventry and Warwickshire are being urged to have their COVID-19 vaccine this weekend where additional appointments have been made available as part of a national Grab a Jab Weekend.
The NHS and partners are encouraging as many people as possible to get the protection the Covid-19 vaccination gives this weekend so they can stay safe with their loved ones this Christmas.
A pop-up vaccination clinic for anyone aged 16 and over will be held in Broadgate in Coventry City Centre on Sunday 28th November between 11am and 4pm. Boosters, first and second doses will be available, and no appointment is needed.
In Warwickshire, Left Hand Grafton House in Alcester is adding an extra 1800 appointments this weekend, the vaccination centre at Stoneleigh is opening on Sunday as well as Saturday and the United Reform Church in Nuneaton has also added extra appointments.
This weekend there will also be sites offering appointments and walk-in opportunities for children aged 12-15 who have been unable to take up the in-school vaccination opportunity.
A pop-up clinic at Central Library in Coventry will be accepting booked appointments for 12-15 year olds on Saturday 27th between 10am and 4pm. Northgate House in Warwick will also be vaccinating children with a booked appointment between 10am and 4pm on Saturday 17th and Sunday 28th. Book via the National Booking Service by visiting www.nhs.uk
Walk-ins where no appointment is needed are available for 12-15’s on Friday 26th at Quinton Park Medical Centre in Coventry before school between 7am and 8.30am and then again after school between 3.30pm and 5.30pm.
Parents or carers must accompany each child to be vaccinated, and if a child missed the in-school appointment because they had Covid-19, then 12 weeks must have elapsed from illness to their vaccination.
Appointments are going fast, and people are encouraged to book online at Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination – NHS (www.nhs.uk) or by calling 119.
Click here to see all the places you can go for a walk-in appointment.
Dr Sarah Raistrick, Clinical Chair of NHS Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Care Board, said: “There are many bookable and walk-in vaccination opportunities taking place this weekend and we really urge people to come and get the vaccine they are entitled to, to help protect them and loved ones before Christmas.
“It is never too late for anyone to get their lifesaving Covid-19 vaccination – the offer from the NHS is evergreen. Vaccination provides powerful protection against severe illness with Covid-19. So getting the jab is the most important things people can do to protect themselves and their loved ones.
“We know immunity begins to wane after six months and booster vaccines will top-up protection to keep people safe over Christmas and the winter months.”
More than 17 million doses of vaccine have been given. Over two million people have now received their top-up booster vaccinations in the Midlands from the NHS, but there are still one million people yet to come forward.
The latest evidence from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) shows that protection against symptomatic disease falls from 65%, up to 3 months after the second dose, to 45% six months after the second dose for the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, and from 90% to 65% for the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. Protection against hospitalisation falls from 95% to 75% for Oxford/AstraZeneca and 99% to 90% for Pfizer/BioNTech.
Cases of COVID-19 in the over 60s remain high in the West Midlands (rates of 180/100,000 population). Recent statistics have also showed that the risk of death involving COVID-19 is 32 times greater in unvaccinated people than in those who had received both doses.