Measles cases are increasing in England. Vaccination is the best protection, but some children are not fully vaccinated.
Measles spreads very easily and infection can lead to serious illness.
NHS England is inviting parents and guardians of children aged 6 to 11 to book a measles vaccination for their child.
If your child is not in this age group and has not had their vaccination, you can still arrange one. You do not need to wait for an invite.
How to book their vaccination
Two free doses of the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine or the MMRV (measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox – or varicella) vaccine are necessary for lifelong protection.
Please contact your child’s GP surgery to arrange their vaccination.
- If your child was born before 1st January 2020, they will be offered the MMR vaccine
- If your child was born on or after 1st January 2020, they will be offered the MMRV vaccine
If you are not sure if your child has had their vaccine, please check their red book or ask their GP surgery. If they have had two doses of the MMR or MMRV vaccines, please ask their GP surgery to update their health record.
If you have already booked a vaccination appointment for your child, you don’t need to do anything else.
More information
Vaccination is the best way to protect your child against measles, mumps and rubella. Millions of doses of the vaccines are given every year. Most side effects, if they happen, are mild and do not last long.
MMRV has been introduced for children born on or after 1st January 2020 to also offer protection against chickenpox (also called varicella).
The MMR and MMRV vaccines both contain a small amount of porcine (pork) gelatine. If your child cannot have this, please ask their GP surgery for the alternative vaccines without gelatine.
To read more, go to www.nhs.uk/mmr and www.nhs.uk/mmrv .
Go to www.england.nhs.uk/mmr-invites to get this information in easy read and other languages and formats.
This information is from the NHS England Vaccination Team
Data Protection: NHS England is responsible for processing your personal data for the purposes of national vaccination programmes. Read more at www.england.nhs.uk/privacy-notice. If you have a question about a vaccination invite, go to: www.england.nhs.uk/invite-enquiry