Polio booster programme for children aged 1-9

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) have advised that as well as the ongoing catch-up offer, a supplementary Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV) campaign should be implemented for children aged 1 to 9 years in London, including those with a complete course of polio vaccination.  This is after the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) declared a national enhanced polio incident response two weeks ago.

The NHS is working across London to support delivery as soon as possible, starting last week in the boroughs where poliovirus has been detected, including Waltham Forest and Hackney in north east London.

Parents will be contacted when it’s their child’s turn to come forward for a booster or catch-up polio dose. All 1-9 year olds in London are due to be offered a vaccination by 26 September and the UKHSA has published this diagram of what should be recommended to a child by age and vaccination status.

Nationally the overall risk of paralytic polio is considered low because most people are protected from this by vaccination. Please encourage parents to ensure their child is up-to-date with their vaccinations, and to get their child boosted as soon as they are called by the NHS.