One in four adults in Wakefield have now received a Covid vaccine - latest updates on 'remarkable achievement'

More than one quarter of people in Wakefield have now received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccination - including 96 per cent of people aged 70 or over.
More than 85,000 people in Wakefield have now received the first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, including more than 96 per cent of over 70s. Pictured is Diane Slack, from Sandal, who was one of the first to receive her vaccine at the Spectrum site.More than 85,000 people in Wakefield have now received the first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, including more than 96 per cent of over 70s. Pictured is Diane Slack, from Sandal, who was one of the first to receive her vaccine at the Spectrum site.
More than 85,000 people in Wakefield have now received the first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, including more than 96 per cent of over 70s. Pictured is Diane Slack, from Sandal, who was one of the first to receive her vaccine at the Spectrum site.

According to NHS England, who have for the first time published vaccination data at a local level, 85,810 people in the Wakefield district have now received their first dose of a Covid vaccine.

And at least 1,297 residents have been given a second vaccine dose.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It means that just over 25 per cent of adults in the district have been vaccinated, in line with vaccination figures for West Yorkshire as a whole.

Dr Phil Wood, who heads the region’s programme, said he was delighted so many of those at greatest risk from Covid-19 had now been given a first dose of the vaccine and that this was a “remarkable achievement”.

“We have been working round the clock to get people in West Yorkshire vaccinated as quickly as possible and the success of this is clear when you see how many people we have managed to vaccinate in just 10 weeks.

"This really is a remarkable achievement, particularly when NHS colleagues have also been dealing with such high levels of Covid-19 patients requiring hospital care.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"We are also very grateful to our partners in the local authorities and voluntary sector who have been supporting the vaccination programme and helping us to ensure as many people as possible are protected.”

According to the figures, which cover the period up to Sunday, February 14, 96.5 per cent of people aged 70 or over in Wakefield have received at least one dose of the vaccine.

It comes just two months after a South Kirkby grandfather became the first person in the district to receive the jab.

Vaccines are on offer at nine sites across the Wakefield district, including a large-scale vaccination centre at Spectrum Community Healthcare, in Wakefield city centre.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Dr Wood said: "Please can we ask people not to contact their GP practice for an appointment, unless they are over 70 or registered as extremely clinically vulnerable.

"Everyone else should wait to be contacted – services are extremely busy and GP practices will not be able to book vaccination appointments unless you have been contacted by the NHS.

“We are also asking people to attend for their booked appointments at exactly the time they’re asked to, so that we can avoid queues in this cold weather, and to continue to follow all the guidance in place to control the virus.

"This is important even if you’ve had the vaccine as you may still be able to spread the disease so please think of others and do your bit to help save lives.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Vaccine rollout has now been expanded to include all those aged 64 and over, and anyone aged 65 or over who has not yet been invited to book an appointment is urged to contact the dedicated Covid-19 helpline on 119.