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Covid-19 vaccination
Covid-19 vaccination FAQs can be found on the NHS website.
For information specific to BaNES, Swindon and Wiltshire and answers to questions from local residents, see below.
The NHS England website publishes the latest Government data regarding the number of people who have been vaccinated and Public Health England have a ‘What you need to know’ blog with similar FAQs.
Walk-in centres
Yes, some local clinics including City Hall in Salisbury and Bath Racecourse are offering first dose vaccinations young people aged under 18.
For a full list of clinics and opening times, visit the ‘Find my nearest walk-in vaccination‘ online service.
Booster vaccine appointments are available to book at a number of locations across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire, including the large sites at Bath Racecourse, the Steam Museum in Swindon and Salisbury City Hall, as well as at smaller venues, such as GP practices and community pharmacies.
The larger sites have the best appointment availability, but some may not see these sites in their search results when using the National Booking Service and, in this case, people should use the postcode of their desired venue when booking an appointment.
Some vaccination centres do have capacity to offer walk-in appointments, and details of these sites can be found on the national walk-in finder website.
General questions
The infographic below shows the latest Covid-19 vaccination uptake.
If you are experiencing problems with the National Booking System website e.g. cancelled appointments; lack of booking reference number; error codes; not being recognised; please call 119 in all instances.
The ICB is not the responsible organisation for this service and cannot answer queries relating to it.
The Vaccine Data Resolution Service (VDRS) aims to resolve missing or incorrect vaccination records for people vaccinated in England who have a current NHS number and are registered with a GP practice in England.
If you believe there is missing or incorrect COVID-19 vaccination data on your record, please call 119 and ask the call agent to make a referral to the VDRS team on your behalf. The VDRS team will then contact you within 5 working days.
Please note: 119 and VDRS call agents will not provide clinical advice and cannot assist with queries related to vaccinations received overseas. If the query relates to personal information that is incorrect on your patient record (e.g. name, address), please contact your GP practice to update this
Information about the vaccine is available online on the NHS website and also the Gov website.
If you had your first dose vaccine in a country other than England (including other countries in the UK) and now need to book your second dose here, please contact our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) to arrange this directly as the National Booking System will not recognise that you have already received your first dose.
Our PALS team will be able to make a local booking arrangement with one of our vaccine centres for you.
Contact PALS by email at: scwcsu.palscomplaints@nhs.net or by phone on 0300 561 0250.
Yes, however each person who would like to receive a vaccine must register with their nearest GP practice as a temporary resident as soon as possible.
A temporary registration will last for approximately three months. After this time, a new temporary registration may be required
It’s not too late to book.
You can use the National Booking Service to find out where you can book your vaccine, or call 119.
Alternatively you can walk in at one of our centres offering this service. Check online on the national walk-in finder website.
Although every effort should be made to attend appointments, it is understood that there may be some occasions in which a cancellation is necessary.
If you need to cancel or change you appointment, you can do this via the National Booking System. Please note that you will have to first cancel an appointment before you can change it.
None of the ingredients for any of the vaccines contain components of animal origin.
The Vegan Society has stated:
‘The definition of veganism recognises that it is not always possible or practicable for vegans to avoid participating in animal use, which is particularly relevant to medical situations.
In the case of Covid-19, vaccination will play a fundamental role in tackling the pandemic and saving lives. As there is currently a legal requirement that all vaccines are tested on animals, at this point in time it is impossible to have a vaccine that has been created without animal use.
The Vegan Society encourages vegans to look after their health and that of others, to continue to be effective advocates for veganism and other animals.
We recommend having something small to eat before your appointment, and bring a water bottle if it’s a hot day. Fainting after vaccination is mostly due to anxiety or low blood sugar levels, so eating something small is a good precaution to take.
If you are not an NHS patient but require a further dose, you can attend a walk-in centre with evidence of which vaccine has been given and discuss with a clinician on the day.
If you are an NHS patient with an NHS number, but do not want your Covid pass updated, and require a further dose, you can attend a walk-in centre with evidence of which vaccine has been given and discuss with a clinician on the day.
If you are an NHS patient with an NHS number, and do want your Covid pass updated, and you require a further dose, contact 119 and request an appointment for an ‘overseas validation service’. The only one locally is Salisbury City Hall, where evidence will be required, the record can be updated, and a vaccination given if appropriate.
The only way to have vaccines administered abroad added to an NHS Covid pass is via this service – the GP practice cannot do this for you.
Vaccination centres
There are over 20 vaccination sites across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire.
They are located at a variety of venues including large sites (e.g. Bath Racecourse and Salisbury City Hall), community locations (e.g. Devizes Corn Exchange) and pharmacies. The large sites are designed to offer the highest volume of vaccinations at a time.
There are more than 20 vaccination sites located across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire, with all of the community-based venues providing the vaccine to those people living in the immediate local area.
It is hoped that most people will be able to attend a site that is close to their home, and for which travel time should be minimal.
For those unable to secure such support, public transport is still operating locally, with many of the vaccine sites situated on, or very near to, major bus routes.
If you are a resident in Bath and North East Somerset and are having difficulties getting to a Covid-19 vaccination site, the Bath and North East Somerset Council ‘Grab a Cab’ initiative means you can now hire a free taxi to get your vaccination appointment.
To use the service, your Covid-19 vaccination must be pre-booked and you must show evidence of the appointment to the taxi driver. Evidence can include a screenshot on a mobile phone or tablet, or a printout.
To book your taxi, call V-Cars on 01225 46 46 46 and say you would like to book a taxi to a vaccination site on account quoting the following details:
Account number: BA-TTV 01
Account name: Grab a Cab
Password: Vaccination site
Once you have booked your taxi, the taxi driver will pick you up and take you to your appointment. Please be aware that your return journey must be within an hour of the appointment time.
'Grab a Cab' is a trial scheme which will run to the end of March 2023.
Yes. All of the vaccine sites across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire are accessible to people in wheelchairs or with a mobility-limiting condition.
If you need additional assistance at the vaccine centre, please share this at the point of booking your appointment and speak to a member of staff upon arrival.
Bath Racecourse is two miles north of Bath City Centre on Lansdown Hill.
The Bath Abbey Bus Stop is situated in the locality of Bath City Centre. Find out more about bus services on the Bath and North East Somerset Council website and the national journey planner website.
If you are a resident in Bath and North East Somerset and are having difficulties getting to a Covid-19 vaccination site, the Bath and North East Somerset Council ‘Grab a Cab’ initiative means you can now hire a free taxi to get your vaccination appointment.
To use the service, your Covid-19 vaccination must be pre-booked and you must show evidence of the appointment to the taxi driver. Evidence can include a screenshot on a mobile phone or tablet, or a printout.
To book your taxi, call V-Cars on 01225 46 46 46 and say you would like to book a taxi to a vaccination site on account quoting the following details:
Account number: BA-TTV 01
Account name: Grab a Cab
Password: Vaccination site
Once you have booked your taxi, the taxi driver will pick you up and take you to your appointment. Please be aware that your return journey must be within an hour of the appointment time.
'Grab a Cab' is a trial scheme which will run to 30 September 2022.
Watch this walk-through video of what to expect when you go to Salisbury City Hall for a Covid-19 vaccination
The main pay and display Central Car Park with a capacity for 1500 vehicles is adjacent to the City Hall. Normal parking charges will apply. The City Hall is also a short walk from the Park & Ride drop-off locations. Please visit the Salisbury Reds website for more information.
Watch this walk-through video of what to expect when you go to Bath Racecourse for a Covid-19 vaccination
There are parking spaces for the general public who attend for their vaccination. There are also two disabled spaces opposite the turnstiles before you enter the vaccination site. Parking is free but as there are limited spaces please arrive just a few minutes before your appointment and leave promptly as soon as you are able to. If you arrive early, please wait in your car.
Students
Currently, vaccine centres in our region are offering the Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines.
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has issued guidance after reports of extremely rare adverse events (blood clots and low platelet count) associated with the first dose of AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine in younger people.
It therefore recommends that people aged up to 39 years are offered an alternative to the AstraZeneca vaccine where possible, but states that individuals may wish to make an informed decision to take up the offer of an AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine if it means receiving a vaccination sooner.
The National Booking Service will offer appointments for a vaccine that is appropriate for your age. You cannot choose which vaccine you have.
Current guidance does not indicate that Covid-19 vaccination is compulsory, to be admitted to a university in England.
International students who are registered with a GP in the UK will be invited for a Covid-19 vaccination in the same way as everyone else.
This includes older international students or those with underlying medical conditions who fall into other priority categories.
Students not currently registered with a GP in the UK who would like to receive a vaccine here must register with their nearest GP practice as a temporary resident as soon as possible. A temporary registration will last for approximately three months. After this time, a new temporary registration may be required.
International students can book their vaccination appointments via the National Booking Service with their NHS number if they have previously received NHS treatment. You can also find an NHS number on the NHS website.
Press releases and stakeholder briefings about the Covid-19 vaccine
We have been issuing a steady stream of updates as the vaccination programme progresses, you can read everything in the news and events section on our website.