Children put at risk as jab rates decline

THOUSANDS of children are being put at risk of deadly diseases because parents are failing to take them for routine vaccinations, a report shows.

Health leaders warned Britain risks ‘turning back the clock’ to when diseases like tetanus, diphtheria and polio were commonplace, unless uptake improves.

The latest NHS figures reveal a worrying trend of falling immunisation levels yearon-year against potentially fatal diseases.

Coverage declined for nine out of 12 routine vaccines for under-5s in the last year. Uptake of the Measles, Mumps and Rubella jab was 91.2 per cent – its lowest in seven years – and well below the World Health Organisation’s target of 95 per cent.

There have been 900 measles cases in England this year, in an outbreak across Europe.

Helen Donovan, Professional Lead for Public Health at the Royal College of Nursing, said wider coverage for such diseases is vital ‘before it’s too late’.

She added: ‘Immunity against life-changing diseases such as tetanus, diphtheria and polio is dropping. These were diseases of the past – and should not be part of our future.’

The NHS Digital report, Childhood Vaccination Coverage Statistics, found uptake has declined for nine of the 12 routine vaccinations measured at age 12 months, 24 months or five years in 2017-18 in England compared to the previous year.

Just one vaccine for rotavirus has improved from 89.6 per cent in 2016-17 to 90.1 per cent in 2017-18.

A five-in-one vaccine for babies to protect against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, polio and haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) disease, has fallen for the fifth year in a row. In 2017/18, 93.1 per cent of one-year-olds had been vaccinated, said the report, compared with 94.7 per cent in 2012/13. Children are now offered the sixin-one vaccine, also covering hepatitis B.

The percentage of two-year- olds who received the Hib and Men C vaccine – which also protects against meningococcal group C bacteria – also declined year-on-year.

Dr Doug Brown, Chief Executive of the British Society for Immunology, said the findings paint a ‘concerning picture.’