Sporting venues, shopping centres and festive locations across the Midlands are being transformed into Covid-19 vaccination sites this weekend as NHS staff seek to protect as many people as possible from the new Omicron strain.

The new vaccine sites will join those already available through the National Booking System, making it even easier for people to book a jab as they race to get protected ahead of Christmas.

Despite Covid-19 disrupting football fixtures across the Midlands, sports fans can visit Coventry and North Warwickshire Cricket Club and Bob the bus at Shrewsbury Town FC to get a vaccination.

For families doing their Christmas shopping this weekend across the region, they can also pop in and grab a jab at Mander Centre, Wolverhampton, Birmingham’s Millennium Point and New Street Station, Coventry’s former Ikea site and Broadgate Shopping Centre, Telford’s Southwater Shopping Centre, and Shrewsbury’s Darwin Shopping Centre, along with their wrapping paper and mince pies.

Vaccinations will also be available at Telford International and around the clock at Birmingham’s 36-hour vaccination clinic at MW Phillips Chemist, Shady Lane (running from 8am on Saturday 18 December to 8pm on Sunday 19 December).

Over 4 million booster jabs have been delivered by the NHS in the Midlands so far and bookings for boosters have continued to surge all week, with a record 121,950 jabs reported on Wednesday alone.

Alison Tonge, the NHS England and NHS Improvement director responsible for overseeing the vaccination programme across the Midlands, said: “We’re making it even easier for people in the Midlands to get their booster jabs, with a whole host of convenient sites including at shopping centres and sports grounds.

“NHS staff and volunteers across the region continue to throw everything at getting as many people protected from the virus as possible before the end of the year, and this includes first, second, third and fourth doses – the offer is evergreen so do come forward if you haven’t already.

“If you’re looking for somewhere to get your lifesaving jab this weekend, or want to take a family member along to get theirs, check out the National Booking Service on nhs.uk– it is regularly updated with new appointments as sites make them available and there’s sure to be a site close to you.

“We now want to keep up the momentum so if you haven’t taken up the offer yet get boosted now.”

Every adult in the region is eligible for a jab three months after their second following updated guidance from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation on 29 November.

UK Health Security Agency data shows that two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine are not enough to stop people becoming unwell from Omicron, but a booster vaccination will boost protection to 75%.

In response to the threat of the new variant, many vaccination sites across the Midlands are operating 12 hours a day, seven days a week– with some sites extending to 24-hour operation to make it easier for people who work shift patterns.

All eligible people in the Midlands aged 18 and over can now use the national booking service to make an appointment to get their jab at centres across the Midlands.