FEARS over the safety of a cervical cancer jab have forced some Oxfordshire schools to cancel immunisation programmes, it emerged last night.

The all-girl Oxford High School scrapped yesterday’s session for 400 pupils in years eight and 10-13 after talks with Oxfordshire Primary Care Trust (PCT).

The news came as the PCT said it was continuing with its vaccination programme.

On Monday, Natalie Morton, 14, died shortly after being given a cervical cancer vaccine, but it has since emerged she had a “serious underlying medical condition”.

She was given the HPV Cervarix jab in Coventry and fell ill a few hours later.

Oxford High School’s vaccination programme has been suspended until the results of her post mortem are known.

Five year groups were due to be inoculated by a team of 10 nurses in the first of three injections. The programme could re-start next month.

Deputy headteacher Olwen Curry said: “We made the decision on Tuesday after the tragic death of the girl in Coventry.

“We thought we should wait until we have got some more information, particularly for the post mortem results.

“We had some girls and parents expressing concern about it. They were worried about the fact someone had died.

“We have had lots of supportive emails thanking us for our decision.”

Last night, it emerged The Dragon School, in North Oxford, had postponed its schedule, while the Wychwood School was understood to have done the same.

The PCT said it believed no other school had pulled out of the vaccination programme.

More than 15,000 cervical cancer vaccination doses have already been given to girls aged 12-18 in Oxfordshire, with about 3,000 yet to be immunised.

The PCT said vaccinations could be postponed for up to a year.

Dr Jonathan McWilliam, Oxfordshire’s director of public health, said: “The PCT has alerted all Oxfordshire GP practices and school health nurses to check their current HPV stock and quarantine the doses with the particular batch number [involved in the Coventry case] in line with the chief medical officer’s guidance.

“This is a precautionary measure. In line with the chief medical officer’s recommendations, we are continuing with the HPV programme.

“School nurses are having discussions with their local schools individually and school nurses are happy to answer any queries from girls or parents.”

The vaccine had undergone “rigorous safety testing” as part of the licensing process required, Dr McWilliam added.

Gill Jaggers’s daughter Maria Marinari, 13, had the vaccination earlier this year at Cheney School, Oxford.

Ms Jaggers, of Cricket Road, said: “We talked it through very carefully and I said it was up to her whether she should have it and I was not going to force her to do it.

“I don’t have any misgivings about her having had it at this stage and I think we made all the right decisions for the right reasons — I don’t believe this incident would have changed anything.”