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The NHS has announced that people experiencing homelessness in the East of England can now get vital protection from potentially serious winter viruses with a free NHS vaccine.

From this week for the first time, NHS teams and charity partners will proactively offer crucial flu and pneumococcal disease vaccines for people sleeping rough, or using homeless hostels or night-shelters regardless of their age, as part of a new national programme. 

People experiencing homelessness can often face increased health risks from winter viruses due to exposure, underlying health conditions, poor living conditions, poor nutrition, high levels of stress and limited access to healthcare – and this latest NHS programme aims to ensure everyone has the best chance to get the protection they need. 

One of our East of England Community and School-Aged Immunisation Service teams is working in partnership with trusted local organisations in Bedfordshire, Milton Keynes and Luton, to increase vaccination uptake among people experiencing homelessness. The team work with homeless shelters, day centres and food banks to offer vaccinations to people experiencing homelessness in familiar, accessible environments. 

The service provides clear and up-to-date health promotion, flexible clinic times and outreach-based delivery to help reduce barriers to access – with the approach successfully improving vaccine confidence and uptake.

As well as through outreach clinics and other convenient locations, people registered with a GP practice can also get vaccinated at their surgery or at a community pharmacy.

Caroline Shepherd, our Assistant Director for Child Health and Immunisations said: “We aim to vaccinate as many eligible individuals against flu and other serious illnesses as possible across the East of England, where we provide immunisation services.

“Through working with trusted partners and taking vaccinations into familiar community settings where people experiencing homelessness already go, our teams have been able to protect a particularly vulnerable part of the population who might otherwise miss out.

“Our pioneering and proactive approach to vaccine delivery has helped us reduce health inequalities and achieve some of the highest vaccination uptake rates in the UK.”

Other groups eligible for their free winter vaccinations from this week include people aged 65 years and over, all adults in clinical risk groups from 18 to under 65, residents of long-stay residential care homes, carers in receipt of carer's allowance, people who are the main carer of an elderly or disabled person, and close contacts of people who are immunocompromised. Eligible frontline health and social care professionals are also now encouraged to come forward for their flu jabs.

Pregnant women, school-age children and two- and three-year-olds have been offered flu vaccinations since 1 September in line with JCVI guidance.

Dr Eleanor Powers, Head of Public Health Commissioning (Immunisation) for NHS England – East of England, said: “The colder winter months can be an especially difficult time for people experiencing homelessness, who can often face much greater health risks from flu and other respiratory viruses.

“That’s why it’s crucial that some of the most vulnerable people in our region can get the protection they need this winter, with the NHS offering free vaccinations at convenient places.

“The flu jab is the best defence we have against winter illness. It takes just a few minutes, but it can provide protection for months, helping to prevent serious illness, avoid hospital admissions and keep the most vulnerable people safe.”

The new programme comes as Prime Minister Andy Burnham has pledged to end rough sleeping in the UK.

The government has launched a national drive to offer anyone sleeping rough a route off the streets this winter if they need it. The £442 million being made available to support this is being provided to councils this week – with areas with the greatest need receiving the largest share of the funding.  

This is part of the pledge to support mayors, councils, the NHS and public services to help everyone live well and improve preventative healthcare which this vaccine rollout will help achieve.

The Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, said: "Nobody should have to sleep rough, but while people are on the streets, we have a duty to keep them safe.

“This NHS initiative will provide vital vaccinations, protecting some of the most vulnerable people from potentially deadly infections.

"We are delivering for people in crisis now, while changing the system for the long term so everyone has a route off the streets for good."

Dr James McGowan, Consultant in Public Health at the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said: “Respiratory infections including flu and pneumonia are a leading cause of preventable hospital admissions in people experiencing homelessness. 

“It is great news that this group of people can now get access to the flu vaccine, helping to protect them against what can be a life reducing infection.”