Sajid Javid and Nadhim Zahawi pen letter to parents of secondary school and college pupils urging them to get their children vaccinated against Covid
- Ministers urged parents to get their children vaccinated, with uptake at just 9%
- It comes as one in 12 students were infected on October 2, according to the ONS
- Health and Education Secretaries said vaccines are 'best defence' against virus
Ministers have urged parents to get their children vaccinated against Covid amid concerns about the rollout of jabs in secondary schools.
The plea comes after one in 12 pupils in England aged 11 to 16 were thought to have been infected on October 2, according to estimates from the Office for National Statistics.
In a joint letter to parents of secondary school and college pupils, Nadhim Zahawi and Sajid Javid said 'vaccines are our best defence' against the virus.
The Education Secretary and Health Secretary said that young people should get vaccinated and test themselves regularly to reduce the spread of the virus and avoid missing school or college.
Meanwhile, a school leaders' union said head teachers are 'increasingly frustrated' about delays to the vaccination programme for 12 to 15-year-olds in schools at a time of rising pupil absences.
More than 200,000 pupils — one in 40 — were off school at the end of last month for reasons connected to the coronavirus, according to official figures.
And just 10 per cent of students aged 12-15 had received their first jab by October 3, according to the UK Health Security Agency.
Three million pupils in the age groups are eligible to receive a single vaccine as part of a rollout that began three weeks ago.
The move to offer jabs to children was hugely controversial because of their tiny risk of falling seriously ill from the virus. Health officials insisted the move was necessary to avoid pupils missing time off school this winter.
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In the letter on Monday, Mr Zahawi and Mr Javid asked for parents' 'support' to encourage their children to test themselves for Covid twice a week and to 'come forward' for the jab to ensure face-to-face lessons can continue.
The ministers wrote that vaccines help protect young people, benefits those around them and reduces transmission.
The letters to parents states: 'We know that some of you will be concerned about the health risks to the young people you care for.
'We want to reassure you that the evidence shows that young people remain at very low risk of serious illness from Covid. However, we need to continue to reduce the spread of Covid.
'Young people who get ill will need to miss school or college, and may spread it to others.
'That is why we are encouraging you all to support your children to get vaccinated and to continue to test regularly.
'This will help to detect cases early, reduce spread, and keep students in education.'
It adds: 'Vaccines are our best defence against Covid. They help protect young people, and benefit those around them.
'Vaccination makes people less likely to catch the virus and less likely to pass it on.'
The programme is expected to be delivered primarily within schools, but in Scotland young people in this cohort can also go to drop-in vaccine clinics.
More than a third of 12 to 15-year-olds in Scotland have received a jab, the latest figures suggest.
The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) has said it would support the use of walk-in centres in England if it would help to 'boost take-up and speed of delivery' of vaccines among the age group.
It comes after figures showed the number of children out of school for Covid related reasons in England increased by two-thirds in a fortnight.
The Department for Education estimates that 2.5 per cent of all pupils – more than 204,000 children – were not in class for reasons connected to coronavirus on September 30.
Geoff Barton, general secretary of ASCL, said: 'We welcome the intervention of the Education Secretary in encouraging take-up of Covid vaccinations, and indeed anything else that can be done to boost this crucial programme.
'However, school leaders are increasingly frustrated about delays to the rollout of coronavirus vaccinations.
'There appear to be logistical issues around the capacity of health teams to deliver vaccinations at the speed and scale required.
'The urgency of this programme is self-evident from the fact that the latest Government statistics show that more than 200,000 pupils were out of school at the latest count because of coronavirus-related reasons.
'Many schools are also experiencing teacher shortages because staff are contracting the virus.'
Mr Barton has called on the Government to 'do everything possible' to ensure the vaccination programme is properly resourced in a bid to tackle disruption.
'If walk-in centres would help to boost take-up and speed of delivery we would very much welcome that,' he added.
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders' union NAHT, said: 'The vaccination programme is proceeding slowly in secondary schools.
'It is important that parents and young people are offered the vaccine as quickly as possible so that they can make their decision about whether to take it.
'Unfortunately, one of the reasons for the slow deployment is that children are missing their chance for vaccination because they have caught Covid.
'If they are off sick they miss vaccination slots at school – and they cannot be jabbed while they are ill anyway – there is a 28-day waiting period before a child who has had Covid can then have the vaccine.'
He called for other measures to be pursued – such as improved ventilation – to reduce illness and disruption and 'to speed up the vaccination rollout'.
A report from the ONS on Friday revealed the virus was most prevalent among children aged 11 to 16 last week, with 6.9 per cent of them estimated to have been infected at any point – around one in 15 youngsters.
But data for the most recent day alone shows 8.1 per cent had Covid – equating to one in 12 children in the age group.
Cases among youngsters have soared since they returned to classrooms from the beginning of last month.
Some local authorities – including in parts of the South West, Cumbria and Northamptonshire – have since brought back face masks in an attempt to quell the latest surge.
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