The first batch of vaccine to help prevent meningitis C in children and young people has reached Oxfordshire.

In the first wave of vaccinations, teenagers who were 15, 16, and 17 at the start of the school year will be offered immunisation from November 8 in schools and health centres throughout the county.

And from November 29, babies will automatically be offered the new vaccine when they attend clinics or GP surgeries for their routine diphtheria/tetanus and polio immunisations at two, three and four months of age. Babies attending for their first MMR immunisation at 13 months of age will also be offered the new vaccine.

The next stage of the programme will start after Christmas when older babies will be offered the new vaccine.

Judith Moreton, immunisation co-ordinator for Oxfordshire Health Authority, said the vaccine was "great news" in the battle against meningitis - but, because it was a new vaccine, supplies were constrained at the moment.

"Therefore we are offering the vaccine to the highest risk groups first of all, and then the others," she said. "Parents should do nothing - they will be invited to bring their children for the vaccination when their turn comes."

She added that, as the vaccine only covered meningitis C, parents should remain vigilant even after their children have been immunised.

Meningitis is typically transmitted by close contact with bacteria carried in the nose and throat. Symptoms include fever, vomiting, severe headache, stiff neck, back or joint pain, dislike of bright lights, and a rash with spots that do not fade under pressure. In February, Adam Prior, 19, a first-year engineering student at Oxford Brookes University, died from the illness. Students starting the new academic year have recently been offered immunisation against the C strain.

Last winter also saw 35 other cases in Oxfordshire.

Story date: Saturday 30 October

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