NEARLY one million people in Oxfordshire have received their first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine since the start of the NHS programme in December.

GP practices, nurses, doctors, staff and volunteers from across the county have given 887,000 first doses and 379,000 second doses.

This is equivalent to 96 per cent take-up in those aged 70 and over, 93 per cent in the 60 to 69-year-olds and 90 per cent in the 50 to 59-year-olds.

More than two thirds of vaccines have been delivered by GP-led primary care networks alongside business as usual of treating patients for other illnesses.

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Nearly 200,000 vaccinations were delivered at the Kassam Stadium – the first of three large scale centres set up by Oxford Health as lead provider for vaccination centres for the NHS in Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire West.

In addition, 4,650 vaccines were delivered at short-term pop-up vaccination clinics and out in communities at Health On The Move buses – roving vaccine centres travelling around the county to make sure as many people as possible have the opportunity to be jabbed.

David Walliker, chief digital and partnership officer at Oxford University Hospitals who oversaw the trust’s vaccination centre at the Churchill Hospital, said: "We are delighted that so many people who live and work in Oxfordshire have taken up the offer of getting the life-saving Covid-19 vaccine.

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"That includes more than 15,000 members of staff who have received their vaccinations, and to them I would like to say a big 'thank you' for keeping our patients and each other as safe as possible.

"Our hardworking vaccinators also administered more than 46,000 vaccines to vulnerable patients and other NHS and social care staff between December and April.

"In that time, we were also thrilled to witness history when Sam Foster, our chief nursing officer, administered the world’s first Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine outside clinical trials here in Oxford."

Even though there has been a huge push to vaccinate people in Oxford following the climbing infection rates, the city continues to lag behind.

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The latest NHS vaccine data reveals major variation in coverage for residents who are fully vaccinated between different areas across Oxford.

Areas with the lowest coverage are Oxford Central, with 25 per cent, East Central Oxford, with 35.2 per cent, and Osney, Jericho & Port Meadow, with 39.3 per cent.

These compare with the highest coverage in Risinghurst & Sandhills, with 78.6 per cent, Barton, with 74 per cent, and Wolvercote & Cutteslowe, with 73.4 per cent.