Wiltshire in top 20 for childhood vaccinations
But experts say vaccination rates need improving to achieve herd immunity
Wiltshire children are among the best-protected in England from contagious diseases – but it might not be enough to stop the spread of potentially fatal bugs.
That’s because the vaccination rate of 92 per cent is still not enough to ensure herd immunity.
And not a single childhood vaccine in England last year met the target needed to ensure diseases cannot spread among youngsters, according to figures released by the UK Health Security Agency.
The 2024/5 figures show that in some areas one-in-five under fives will be starting primary school this week without full protection against a number of serious diseases.
The World Health Organisation recommends at least 95 per cent of children should receive vaccine doses for each illness to achieve herd immunity.
Nationally, some 91.9 per cent of five-year-olds had received one dose of the MMR (measles, mumps & rubella) vaccine, unchanged from 2023/24 and the lowest level since 2010/11.
Just 83.7 per cent of five-year-olds had received both MMR doses, down year on year from 83.9 per cent and the lowest level since 2009/10.
Uptake of the first MMR dose at 24 months stood at 88.9 per cent in 2024/25 – unchanged on the previous year, but again the lowest figure since 2009/10.
Coverage for the Hib/MenC vaccine, which protects against haemophilus influenzae type B and meningitis C, stood at 88.9 per cent for children in England aged five, down from 89.4 per cent in 2023/24 and the lowest level since 2011/12.
Meanwhile, uptake of the four-in-one pre-school booster vaccine – which protects against polio, whooping cough, tetanus and diphtheria – stood at just 81.4 per cent among five-year-olds in England in 2024/25.
This is down from 82.7 per cent the previous year and the lowest since current data began in 2009/10.
The figure peaked at 88.9 per cent in 2012/13.