Research and analysis

Meningococcal carriage investigation: information for students

Published 29 April 2026

Applies to England

Meningococcal carriage investigation among university students in Canterbury and Medway, May 2026

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is responding to the recent outbreak of meningococcal meningitis in Canterbury, Kent, in March 2026. Meningococcal meningitis is a serious infection caused by the bacterium Neisseria meningitidis. Many healthy people carry the bacteria in their nose or throat. This is especially common in young adults, including university students.

Having meningococcal bacteria in your throat does not normally make you unwell, but in very rare instances, it can cause meningitis and blood poisoning (septicaemia).

The meningococcal meningitis outbreak in Kent was very unusual. We want to find out how common meningococcal bacteria are in the throats of university students in Kent, particularly the strain that caused the outbreak.

To do this, we need your help. We are asking you to take part in the investigation by completing a short online survey and providing a throat swab, which will be taken by experienced healthcare staff at your local campus.

The purpose of this investigation

The meningococcal meningitis outbreak in Kent was very unusual because so many young adults became very unwell in a very short time. We now know that the outbreak was caused by a new variant (strain) of the meningococcal bacteria. However, we do not know how commonly the meningococcal bacteria, and especially the outbreak strain, are carried in young adults in Kent. To do this, we would like to collect throat swabs from 3 different groups of university students age 18 to 24.

UKHSA Research and Public Health Ethics Governance Group (REGG) approval has been granted for this study.

Who can take part

In order to take part in this survey you should be aged 18 to 24 and one of the following:

1. A student that studies in-person at the University of Kent Canterbury campus
2. A student that studies at the Canterbury Christ Church University Canterbury campus
3. A student that studies at any of the Universities at Medway campus (including students at any of the University of Greenwich, Canterbury Christ Church University, or the University of Kent)

Involvement in other surveys, or having received treatment with antibiotics as part of the outbreak in this area does not prevent you from taking part in this investigation.

What happens if I agree to take part?

If you are eligible and decide to take part, please follow the link at the bottom of this page to sign up.

You will be asked to provide consent to take part and complete the first part of a short online survey. Once completed, you will be given a unique code and asked to select a date and time of your convenience to attend a site on your university campus to complete the second part of the online survey and have a swab taken by a trained healthcare professional.

Do I have to take part?

It is up to you to decide whether or not you want to take part and you can withdraw your consent at any point, see What if I change my mind and don’t want to carry on with the survey below.

What are the risks of taking part?

Some people find a throat swab either tickly or a bit unpleasant but the process is very quick, and will be done by a trained health professional.

What will happen to the sample I provide?

We will freeze all the swabs initially and then test them in batches to look for meningococcal bacteria, which will be sent to the UKHSA national reference laboratory for further testing.

What will happen if you find meningococcal bacteria on my throat swab?

You do not have to worry even if we find the bacteria on your throat swab. This is common in young adults and finding the bacteria does not mean that you have any increased risk of developing meningococcal disease (meningitis or septicaemia). Most young adults will naturally get rid of the bacteria from the back of their throats over time.

Importantly, by the time we test the swabs in the laboratory, a few weeks will already have passed, and it is likely that your body will have already eliminated the meningococcal bacteria from the back of your throat. Additionally antibiotics only eliminate carriage of the meningococcal bacteria for a few days, so some people may continue to be carriers if they are exposed to the bacteria again, even if they are treated with antibiotics.

For this reason, we will not take any action if meningococcal bacteria are found on any of the throat swabs, even if it is the outbreak strain.

On very rare occasions we may identify Neisseria gonorrhoeae (gonococcus), the bacteria that cause gonorrhoea, from the throat swab. This is because the gonococcus is genetically very closely related to the meningococcus and the bacteria can look very similar in the laboratory. If the rare instance that we identify a gonococcus on a throat swab, one of the doctors in the investigation team will telephone you to arrange further assessment at your local sexual health clinic.

What will happen to the information I provide and the results of my swab?

UKHSA will keep all the information securely in accordance with data protection law, namely the UK General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

We are using a highly secure online platform (Snap Survey) for the online survey that we are asking you to complete. We will not ask you for any information that directly identifies you (such as your name, date of birth or address), except for your mobile number, for the reasons explained below.

The survey does ask some personal questions to help us understand patterns of exposure, such as your age, gender, ethnicity, relationship status, housing, social activities, smoking/vaping and kissing. We will link your survey answers with your throat swab results using your unique 5-digit code that you will receive after you complete the survey. All the information collected as part of the outbreak investigation, including the survey responses and swab results, will be treated confidentially and stored securely in password protected databases within UKHSA servers and only the UKHSA investigation team will have access to the information.

We ask for your mobile number so that we can:

• text you your unique code that you will need to provide when you attend your swabbing appointment; and
• send you a reminder of the date, time and location of your swabbing appointment at your local university campus.
• on very rare occasions, where we identify a gonococcus on a throat swab, a doctor in the UKHSA investigation team will telephone contact you to arrange further assessment at your local sexual health clinic.

For further information regarding the information UKHSA collect and use, and your individuals rights over your information, please see the UKHSA privacy notice.

What if I change my mind and don’t want to carry on with the survey

If you agree to take part and later change your mind, you can withdraw at any time just by emailing us at menb_carriage_kent2026@ukhsa.gov.uk stating your unique code.

You don’t have to give us a reason for withdrawing from the investigation.

Please let us know if you are not going to attend your swabbing appointment so that we can offer the appointment to someone else. Once you start the survey, you can exit at any time, although data that has been submitted to that point will be retained.

What happens at the end of the investigation?

We will destroy your swab after 1 year. We will keep the information provided through the online survey and the swab result, for up to 5 years after the end of the investigation. This does not include your mobile number.

At the end of the investigation, we will let your university know about the overall findings. Results will be published in scientific medical journals and will help to inform public health action in the future.

You will not be identified in any report or publication.

What if I have a complaint?

If you would like to make a complaint, please email the investigation team at menb_carriage_kent2026@ukhsa.gov.uk. We will acknowledge your query or concern within 10 working days and give a response as to how it will be dealt with.

If you remain unhappy or wish to make a formal complaint, please contact the UKHSA complaints team by emailing complaints1@ukhsa.gov.uk.

Further information on the complaints procedure can be found at on .GOV.UK.

Take part in the study

If you are eligible and would like to take part in the meningococcal carriage study, sign up using the link below.