Summer is just starting to fade and now that time of year is fast approaching, we wanted to share our plans with you for the coming Autumn. For the past 18 months, our practice, worked with the other four practices in the North Cotswolds to deliver the Covid-19 vaccination programme from the North Cotswold Community Hospital. We are very proud to say that it was one of the most successful programmes in Gloucestershire.

We are pleased to advise our patients that we are, once again all working together to deliver the Autumn vaccination programme of Covid boosters and Seasonal Influenza vaccinations. We understand that we are most likely to be vaccinating with the mRNA bivalent vaccine alongside the age-appropriate seasonal influenza vaccinations.

The team, based at the North Cotswold Community Hospital site is made up of staff from our practice along with colleagues from Stow Surgery, Campden Surgery, White House Surgery and Mann Cottage Surgery. They work alongside colleagues from the Primary Care Network and our wonderful volunteer workers.

The clinics where patients can get their Autumn Covid Booster and their Flu vaccination at the same time, will start at the hospital, towards the end of September. We will be first visiting our most vulnerable patients in local care homes around mid- September. WE will then be working in the vaccination hub at Moreton Hospital, mostly on Saturdays and Sundays, during October and November.

At present all 75 years old and over have been invited and the hub team are just finishing off the manual booking of these patients.

They expect to invite the next cohort of patients within the next week, however unfortunately some of the team are off with covid themselves at the moment which may slow progress.

Monday to Friday the hospital and the surgeries will be working as usual and so there will not be any vaccinations or staff in the hospital during the working day so please do not drop in this time!

Children’s nasal flu vaccinations will be carried out in the practice for children age 2 -3 yrs who are not at school and those aged 4-16 with at-risk conditions. School aged children under 16 will be receiving the nasal flu vaccination at school.

All of our other flu vaccinations will be going to Moreton hospital for our patients to have along with their Covid boosters.

We ask our patients awaited their invitation and contacted the hub telephone number 01608 692115 with queries about these vaccinations. This will help us to keep the surgery telephone lines and our receptionists free for our routine daily work. It is our aim to get everyone booked in for their appointment before we start vaccinating and to do this, we will need your patience to get through everyone in turn. We will also in due course send out reminders to those who have not booked and update on any changes regularly via the website.

You may receive an invitation from the National Booking System starting from 5th September. Unfortunately, we are unable to use the National Booking System as a booking option for our patients, so as previously, please disregard this invitation and await your invite to the local service at North Cotswold Hospital from the practice hub team. You do not have to travel out of the area to get vaccinated, there is local provision for local patients.