Jabs from July: Making Sense of the New Vaccine Timeline

UPDATE - this was recorded before the UKHSA announced that if Menitorix stocks depleted and a child born on or before 30/6/24 presents for one year immunisations we should offer an additional dose of 6:1 therefore that isn't covered in this podcase but is in the UKHSA slides and is what we should do for those who present late and no further Menitorix is available.

The UK child immunisation schedule is undergoing major changes starting 1st July 2025, with Meningitis B vaccinations moving from 16 weeks to 12 weeks and additional modifications to the one-year immunisations. These changes respond to shifts in disease patterns, with Men B infections now peaking earlier in infancy and the discontinuation of Menitorix requiring programme restructuring.

• Changes to 12-week immunisations: Men B moved forward from 16 weeks to 12 weeks from 1st July 2025
• Changes apply based on appointment date, not birth date
• Careful checking needed for 16-week appointments to determine correct schedule
• One-year immunisations: No more Menitorix for babies born after 1st July 2024
• Children who turned one before 1st July 2025 should still receive Menitorix while stocks last
• New 18-month immunisation appointments coming January 2026
• Red books will not reflect these changes for some time
• Health Publications' immunisation calculator can help determine correct schedules
• Patient communication is key - explain schedule changes clearly to parents

I'd love to hear suggestions for future episode topics, including women's health, contraception, and long-term conditions. Please use the link in the description to send in your ideas.

Link to letter outlining changes - Changes to the routine childhood vaccination schedule from 1 July 2025 and 1 January 2026 letter - GOV.UK

UKHSA Slide Set detailing changes - Changes to the routine childhood immunisation programme in 2025 and 2026

Childhood Immunisations Calculator (you will need an Excel compatible device) - Childhood immunisation eligibilty calculator - Health Publications

Updated with a really helpful visual guide - Immunisation-appointment-aide-memoire-NHSE-London.pdf

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome and Introduction
• 0:35 What's Driving the Immunisation Changes
• 2:16 July 2025 Schedule Changes
• 4:20 One-Year Immunisation Updates
• 10:34 Resources and Future Episodes

Transcript

Ashleigh: 0:06

Hello and welcome to Generally Practising with Ashleigh. I'm Ashleigh and this is our first episode. I'm going to be focusing on the upcoming changes to the UK schedule of immunisations. Okay, so let's breathe. If we need a cup of tea, that's fine. Let's get our head around the biggest shake-up to the child immunisation programme ever, I think. Okay. So let's first briefly cover what has driven these changes.

Ashleigh: 0:41

Sadly, a shift in the peak infection age for meningitis B from five to six months to one to three months has henceforth brought forward the second dose of meningitis B immunisation from 16 weeks to 12 weeks, because unfortunately, there were a substantial number of babies contracting meningitis B before the time that they would have received their second dose. Then, with the one-year immunisations changes, gsk are discontinuing the meniterics, and so changes are necessary. The meningitis ACWI programme has been exceptionally effective at reducing instances of meningitis C, and so there's less evidence to continue offering at one year of age. However, instances of Hib in those aged one to four are higher, with the current schedule offering this only at primariums with the 6-in-1 vaccine and then at one year with Benetrix, and so a fourth dose of 6-in-1 will be offered at soon-to-be-added 18-month immunisation appointments to ensure Hib protection and also giving the opportunity for a second MMR to be given at 18 months to combat rising measles cases. Okay, so that's very briefly why the changes are happening and we're going to park the later changes for now. The introduction of the 18 months immunisations we're going to park that for now because that isn't happening until January 2026.

Ashleigh: 2:27

So let's break down the changes that are coming into effect from the 1st of July 2025. And, as I say, there are changes from the 1st of January as well, but we're going to leave that. We've got six months to get our heads around the changes that are coming in as of the 1st of July. Let's get comfortable with the first lot of changes and then we'll worry about the changes, the other changes, when they happen. I know that might seem like a deferral technique, but honestly there's so much going on, there's so many changes. There's also so much vaccine misinformation out there that I kind of think that if, when we're having discussions with parents, in some instances, if you pause, if you hesitate, if you don't seem certain about what you're saying, they kind of latch on to that and it's easy for them to lose some faith if they've perhaps seen a lot of vaccine misinformation out there in social media. So I think it's sensible to let's really cement our knowledge on the first batch of changes.

Ashleigh: 3:28

So that leads me into from the 1st of July, when a baby presents for their eight-week immunisations, it's the same as we've always done six in one, men B, rota. There are no changes to the first immunisation appointment. However, after the 1st of July we're going to have some changes to the 12-week immunizations. Now remember, it's on or after the 1st of July these changes take effect. So it doesn't matter the baby's date of birth for this one, it's the age of presentation on or after the 1st of July. So this could have been a baby born in January. That's late for their second IMS. It could have been a baby who you know is bang on time and 12 weeks old on the 1st of July and has an appointment that day. So it's the age at presentation as of the 1st of July for the changes to the primary immunisations.

Ashleigh: 4:24

So we have a new schedule. We have the 6-in-1 dose of meningitis B and rota. So the 12-week immunisations, the meningitis B has been brought forward from 16 weeks to 12 weeks. Then the third immunisations will be the 6-in-1 and PCV13. So we need to be very careful that we are advocating for ourselves. Have an additional time if we feel that's needed. What I've started doing is spending a bit of admin time going through and looking at the babies that are already booked in and adding a note to the slots to say what they will be due, because there are some that are just daisy.

Ashleigh: 5:01

The side of the schedule change I feel like the ones that there is a potential for error really is the 16 week. I don't think any of us are going to have an issue getting our head around the fact that MenB is now at 12 weeks. They're just being mindful of it's the date of presentation, it's not the date of birth. So, yeah, I think MenB is now eight and 12 weeks. I think we're all really intelligent people. I think that's fairly easy, but some of us are put under a lot of stress, a lot of time constraints, a lot of pressure, incredibly busy, I think, squeeze-ins.

Ashleigh: 5:41

I think the potential for error is we've got, we're going to get in our head after the 1st of July, it's the new schedule and the schedule has changed and at 16 weeks they'll have PCV and I think that's the appointment then the 16-week appointment that we really need to be double-checking and seeing what did they actually have at 12 weeks, because if they were seen for the 12-week IMS on or before the 30th of June, then they've had the old schedule. They have had PCV at 12 weeks and so they need the old schedule. They need their second dose of Membi at 16 weeks. Babies who had their 12 weekends before the 1st of July will still need a second dose of Membi at 16 weeks. So I think that's where we need to be really careful and we also need to be aware that the red books are going to reflect the old schedule now, so red books are not going to be an effective prompt for us for the foreseeable future, even babies born now who will always be on the new schedule, obviously that they're not necessarily being given up to date red books showing the changes. I haven't seen any updated red books yet at all and I know from previous changes it did take a considerable amount of time for the new red books to filter through. So just being mindful and have those conversations with parents, explain that there's been a schedule change. I'm always happy to show parents that you know what we use the schedule tools and all of that and say this has been a schedule change. This book was printed some years ago. Quite often, if you look at the date at the front of the red book, they are quite old. So just yeah, just highlighting that whilst the red book may say one thing, actually the most up-to-date guidance is something different. Okay, then we have the changes to the one-year immunizations. Okay.

Ashleigh: 7:30

So, again, late presenters are going to be the ones that are causing us a little bit more time to think about what they're having. So, basically, minotaurix Hibamensi is to be removed from the one-year immunizations, but only for babies born after the 1st of July 2024. So anybody that will turn one after the 1st of July 2025, which is the date we've all got in our head for the changes. Anybody that is coming for one year IMS after the 1st of July 2025, new schedule if they turned one on or after that day. So, no miniaturics, only three injections to be given. These babies will also be offered an 18-month appointment. Again, that doesn't come into effect until January. We're parking those thoughts for now, but it might just be an idea to mention to the parents that they're going to be having an 18 month appointment.

Ashleigh: 8:33

Late presenters children that were born before the 1st of July 2024, these ones should still be offered Hibber Men's Sea if they present late. So these are the ones that are already going to be one year of age before the schedule change date, which is obviously the 1st of July 25. So if they present late whale stocks last, obviously there'll come a point where we can't order any more from Inform and unfortunately that is out of our hands. But if the late presenters anybody that turned one before the 1st of July 2025, they should still be offered Minitorix. And again, this is where we have to advocate for ourselves to spend a little bit of time telling our managers that we need that little bit more time to check through our clinics, telling our managers that we need that little bit more time to check through our clinics, checking the dates of birth, checking when the baby's turned one for anybody that's booked in for one-year IMS, because we do occasionally have some babies booked in for one-year IMS who are actually almost two. So you know, we just need to spend a little bit of time really saying to your practice you know, if we get this wrong, we're not going to get paid for it. So we need a little bit more time and also we get it wrong, we have to recall the patient, we lose another appointment. So it really is just worth spending that time just double checking the record, you know, having something printed out in front of you.

Ashleigh: 9:59

I will put a link in the description to a useful tool. I don't know if you've seen it, but health publications have released a child immunization calendar, so I'll link that in the description as well. You will need a device with Excel capabilities on it. I have seen on some forums people have had issues using it on their mobile phone. If you don't have Excel for mobile on your phone, it won't be able to work, because it's essentially an Excel spreadsheet with the formulas that are embedded in it that generate the calculation from the date of birth for the immunizations. I had, to be honest, really thought, oh, I'll do that. I saw the shingles one and I thought, oh, how amazing would it be if there was one for the child IMS. I need to work out to do this on Excel, because I'm a bit of an Excel geek Not that I'm particularly good at it, just that I find it really interesting and I enjoy messing around with it. So I am a little bit devastated that health publications have created this before me. However, it is a brilliant and fantastic tool and resource that we have to help us. So I will pop the link for that in there.

Ashleigh: 11:12

So, in brief summary, after the 1st of July, anybody who comes for the 12-week immunisations new schedule, second men B to be at 12 weeks and PCV move to 16 weeks just double check your 16 week IMS to see what they had at 12 weeks. When we get into August time, that's when we're going to be seeing those. That's when we're going to be really needing to pay careful attention to what's been given previously and remembering, you know, whilst the schedule has changed. Ultimately we've been given these immunisations how we've been giving them for a long time. We're not going to harm anybody if we do give somebody their PCV at 12 weeks on the 1st of July. Yes, it is. You know it is an error, we have gone off schedule. But if we're thinking of actual physical harm to the baby, then no, equally. Again, if we inadvertently gave a third dose of Membi at 16 weeks, yes, we would have to report it. It is an error. However, when we're talking of likelihood of actual physical harm, you know very unlikely to cause actual physical harm because general principle of immunization we can't over immunize.

Ashleigh: 12:32

Okay, then, in summary, one year IMS. If you turned one after the 1st of July, then no more minotaurics. If they turned one before the 1st of July, they still have Minutrix while the stocks last. Those babies that turned one after the 1st of July heads up. You'll be having an 18-month immunisation appointment as well. They turned one before the 1st of July. They won't be offered an 18-month immunisation appointment as it is at the minute and I'll cover further updates regarding the changes happening in January at a later date. But for now let's get our head around these. We've got six months to get to grips with this before the next lot of changes. So I hope that was helpful. I'm hoping for future episodes to sort of cover a variety of different topics. I'm thinking, you know, women's health, contraception, long-term conditions. Any suggestions would be very gratefully received. There should be a link again in the description to send in any suggestions. But for now, happy practicing.