Key changes from Autumn / Winter 2024 to 2025
- The COVID-19 vaccine cohort has significantly reduced.
- At-risk patients and frontline staff are no longer eligible for COVID-19 vaccination this season.
- Adults aged 65–74 are no longer eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations this season.
- This has resulted in a reduction of eligible population by more than half in many areas.
COVID-19 Vaccine Eligibility – Autumn / Winter 2025
The following groups are eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine this season:
- Residents in care homes for older adults
- Adults aged 75 years and over
- Individuals aged 6 months and over who are immunosuppressed, as defined in the Tables 3 and 4 of Chapter 14a of the Green Book COVID-19: the green book chapter – GOV.UK
Please note
- The vaccine should be offered no earlier than 6 months after the last dose.
- Those eligible can receive the vaccine even if they have not previously take up a COVID-19 vaccine offer
Flu Vaccine Eligibility – Autumn / Winter 2025
The flu vaccine programme remains unchanged from 2024. Eligible groups include:
- aged 2 and 3 years on 31 August 2025 (now also available via community pharmacy from 1 October 2025)
- eligible school-aged children (Reception to Year 11)
- those aged 6 months to under 65 years in clinical risk groups
- pregnant women
- all those aged 65 years and over
- those in long-stay residential care homes
- carers in receipt of carer’s allowance or main carer of an older or disabled person
- household contacts of immunocompromised individuals
- frontline health and social care staff
Flu vaccinations for pregnant women and children will commence from 1 September 2025, with the main adult campaign starting 1 October 2025.