Unvaccinated children may face school ban

HEALTH Secretary Matt Hancock said bold action is needed after alarming figures revealed that the number of children being vaccinated is dropping.

Take-up of all 10 routine NHS vaccines offered to under-fives has fallen in the past year while the first dose of the MMR jab dropped for the fifth year in a row.

Experts warn that parents may be forgetting how deadly childhood diseases can be following the figures released by NHS Digital yesterday.

Others may refuse to vaccinate their children due to misleading information spread on social media, it has been said.

Impact

Mr Hancock said the falling rates were “unacceptable”, adding: “Everyone has a role to play in halting this decline.

“The loss of our measles-free status is a stark reminder that devastating diseases can, and will, resurface.

“We need to be bold and I will not rule out action so that every child is properly protected.”

The Department of Health and Social Care said a range of options have been suggested, including mandatory vaccination.

In April, Mr Hancock refused to rule out the possibility that unvaccinated children would be sent home from school in the future.

The level of children receiving the combined diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio and Haemophilus influenzae jab fell to 92.1 per cent, its lowest level since 2008-09.

Uptake of children’s first dose of

the MMR jab fell from 91.2 per cent to 90.3 per cent. Dr Mary Ramsay, head of immunisation at Public Health England, said these were “big drops in terms of public health”.

She added: “No parent should be in any doubt of the devastating impact of these diseases.

“It’s vital that everyone recognises the value of vaccines and takes up this life-saving offer.”