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Vaccine update: issue 356, March 2025

Published 24 March 2025

Applies to England

Its time for the spring COVID-19 vaccination programme

Vaccination for all eligible cohorts should begin from 1 April 2025. Priority should be given to older adult care homes and eligible housebound patients. The campaign end date will be 17 June 2025.

Eligibility

During the 2025 spring campaign the following groups should be offered a COVID-19 vaccine:

• all adults aged 75 years and over including individuals aged 74 who will have their 75th birthday before the campaign ends (17 June 2025)
• residents in a care home for older adults
• individuals aged 6 months and over who are immunosuppressed, as defined in tables 3 and 4 of the Green Book chapter 14a

Recommended vaccines

The recommended vaccines for the spring 2025 campaign are all monovalent products containing mRNA for the spike protein of the JN.1 sub-lineage of the Omicron variant strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Invitations and bookings

The NHS will plan to invite and vaccinate those eligible for a spring dose in time for completion by 17 June 2025 via a combination of local and national invites.

Sites will have access to the National Booking Service (NBS) 18 March 2025.

Sites must load appointments so that invitations can commence, and the public can book appointments from 25 March 2025 for vaccination from 1 April 2025.

A new appointment management system for sites is currently in development. Further information, training and guidance will be provided in due course.

The COVID-19 resources have been updated for the Spring 2025 vaccination programme

• Green Book chapter 14a
• COVID-19 Information for Health Care Practitioners
• leaflet Guide to the COVID-19 spring programme
• “I’ve had my COVID-19 vaccine” sticker. These stickers are for healthcare practitioners to give to individuals who have received a COVID-19 vaccine. There are 50 stickers per sheet.
• poster Which COVID-19 vaccine?

Meningococcal B (MenB) vaccination programme for infants

The black triangle designation has been removed from the 4CMenB vaccine (Bexsero) product licence and the tip cap of the vaccine syringe no longer contains latex: references to both have therefore been removed. The opportunity was taken to also undertake some general updating of the text and of the epidemiological information. The vaccination programme is unchanged.

The following resources have been reviewed and revised: - MenB vaccination information for Healthcare Practitioners - Meningococcal B vaccination for infants aged from 8 weeks training slideset

Training and development opportunities

There is so much change to the programmes this year, we urge all teams and individuals to make time to attend the available events below, book now to avoid missing out!

Fundamentals of Immunisation Tuesday 6 and Wednesday 7 May 2025

Venue: UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, 30 Guilford Street, London WC1N 1EH

• attendance at this event is in person only
• course fee: £250 for two days (£125 for one day)

The UK Health Security Agency and UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health are running their annual Fundamentals of Immunisation course in May 2025. This two-day intense theoretical course is designed for those new to a role in immunisation and is most suited to those who give or advise on a range of different vaccines.

The course comprises a series of lectures from national immunisation experts and will provide delegates with the latest information on the range of topics included in the ‘Core Curriculum for Immunisation Training’. A basic level of prior immunisation knowledge and familiarity with the Green Book (Immunisation against infectious disease) will be assumed.

The programme includes the following topics:

• why immunisation matters
• vaccine manufacture and vaccines trials
• immunology of immunisation
• current and emerging issues in vaccine preventable disease
• monitoring vaccine safety
• talking with parents about immunisation
• vaccine coverage data collections
• maximising immunisation uptake
• legal issues including consent
• practical issues storage and administration
• the scientific basis of national vaccine policy
• designing, informing and monitoring immunisation programmes

Book your place here now

If you have any queries, please contact Helen Bedford h.bedford@ucl.ac.uk or Laura Craig laura.craig@ukhsa.gov.uk.

Registration for NIN 2025 now open

Booking is now available for the UKHSA’s 12th National Immunisation Network (NIN) training conference.

Visit the NIN 2025 site to book your place.

This year’s event, themed ‘Immunisation: Live long and prosper’, will focus on data-driven developments in vaccines across the life course and their wider economic and societal impact.

• Day 1 has a strong scientific focus and will include hot topic sessions on significant exciting new developments, expansions and new vaccines used in the routine and selective immunisation programmes
• Day 2 has an operational and implementation focus, including sharing of innovative developments and successes in programme delivery

NIN25 Scientific Poster Competition

Thank you to everyone who submitted abstracts. The NIN team will be reaching out to successful submitters in the next week. Full details will be emailed to those that have been selected this year.

If you have missed the opportunity to submit a scientific poster for this year’s NIN training conference, do not worry. We are always accepting submissions for articles to be featured here in Vaccine Update. Please get in touch at immunisation.website@ukhsa.gov.uk if you would like to share your work with our readers.

Health publications, consent and vaccine programme publications

Are you making best use of the Health publications website?

The leaflets for each programme are a very important part of the consent process. They also offer advice on side effects and where to report them through the yellowcard scheme. Many of the programmes also offer translated versions in up to 34 community languages. We also offer Easy read, versions for those who have learning disabilities or who experience autism. We have simple text leaflets for people with low literacy. We offer BSL videos for people with no or low hearing. We offer braille for parents, carers and individuals who are blind and are braillists. We also offer audio versions for those who cannot read but can listen in English.

We also offer posters, infographics for the web and social media, record cards, stickers for all ages, vaccine administration and vaccine identification posters and posters to alert teams to fever, tetanus prone injuries, measles awareness and more. If you don’t have an account, please sign up and place your order today. The service is free with free delivery.

Vaccine supply

Routine vaccination programme

Change of vaccine brand for the pre-school booster diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis and polio (dTaP/IPV) vaccination

The vaccine brand used for the pre-school booster diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis and polio (dTaP/IPV) vaccination is changing from Boostrix-IPV® to REPEVAX®. The vaccines are clinically equivalent, and continue to be offered at 3 years 4 months of age, and to children up to 10 years of age who have not yet received it. Please continue to order and administer Boostrix-IPV® until ImmForm and local stockholdings deplete.

REPEVAX® vaccine is expected to be available to order via ImmForm from spring 2025. High-level ordering controls will be in place to reduce the risk of ordering errors only. These are not intended to restrict activity.

REPEVAX® vaccine ordered via ImmForm will be supplied as a single dose pack, containing one pre-filled syringe of vaccine and a patient information leaflet (PIL). The pack does not contain a needle for administration. Guidance on the choice of needle size can be found in chapter 4: Immunisation procedures of the Green Book. Needles should be obtained locally.

Please add REPEVAX® to your routine ImmForm order where possible, rather than creating additional orders.

To minimise wastage due to fridge failures, please order no more than 2 weeks’ worth of stock.

Details about the pre-school booster dTaP/IPV vaccination programme are published in chapter 24: Pertussis in the Green Book.

Further details about REPEVAX® vaccine can be found in the SmPC.

Contact helpdesk@immform.org.uk for ordering queries.

Supply of vaccines with reduced shelf life

Vaccines supplied via ImmForm for the routine immunisation programme will usually have at least 3 months of shelf-life remaining at the time of delivery. To help reduce wastage, vaccines with reduced shelf-life will occasionally be supplied. This will typically only apply to small volumes of stock. However, where vaccines may be supplied with reduced shelf-life for an extended period, ImmForm customers will be informed via ImmForm news articles, updates on the ImmForm product page, or a click-through pop-up message at the time of ordering. ImmForm customers should order no more than 2 weeks’ worth of stock to minimise wastage due to fridge failures or failure to use stock before expiry. See chapter 3: Storage, distribution and disposal of vaccines of the Green Book (Immunisation against infectious disease) for further details on the storage and supply of vaccines.

Change of vaccine brand for meningococcal groups A, C, W and Y (MenACWY) vaccination

The vaccine used for meningococcal groups A, C, W and Y (MenACWY) vaccination is changing from Nimenrix® to MenQuadfi®. The vaccines are clinically equivalent. Please continue to order and administer Nimenrix® until ImmForm and local stockholdings deplete.

MenQuadfi® vaccine is now available to order via ImmForm. High-level ordering controls will be in place to reduce the risk of ordering errors only. These are not intended to restrict activity.

MenQuadfi® vaccine ordered via ImmForm will be supplied as a single-dose pack, containing one vial of vaccine and a Patient Information Leaflet (PIL). The pack does not contain a needle or a syringe for administration. Guidance on the choice of needle size can be found in chapter 4 of the Green Book. Needles and syringes should be obtained locally.

MenQuadfi® and Nimenrix® vaccines are packed in different sized cartons. Please ensure you have enough fridge capacity before placing any orders. To help with planning storage requirements, the dimensions are as follows:

• MenQuadfi® is 58 x 32 x 45mm (H x W x D)
• Nimenrix® was 57 x 27 x 135mm (H x W x D)

Please add MenQuadfi® to your routine ImmForm order where possible, rather than creating additional orders. To minimise wastage due to fridge failures, please order no more than 2 weeks’ worth of stock.

Details about the meningococcal vaccination programme are published in chapter 22 of the Green Book.

Further details about MenQuadfi® vaccine can be found in the SmPC.

Contact helpdesk@immform.org.uk for ordering queries.

Introduction of Abrysvo® RSV vaccine for older adults and during pregnancy for infant protection

From 1 September 2024, RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) programmes were introduced for older adults and during pregnancy for infant protection. Please refer to the letter introducing the new NHS programmes against RSV.

The same RSV vaccine, Abrysvo®, is used for both programmes.

Abrysvo® vaccine is now available to order via ImmForm. Customers in Scotland should refer to local ordering guidance. High-level ordering controls are in place to reduce the risk of ordering errors only. These are not intended to restrict activity. Any further updates to ordering information will be published online as an ImmForm news article.

Abrysvo® vaccine ordered via ImmForm is supplied as a single-dose pack, containing one vial of vaccine, diluent for reconstitution and a PIL.

Each pack also contains one 25G x 25mm (1”) needle. Guidance on the choice of needle size can be found in chapter 4 of the Green Book. If required, other sizes of needles should be obtained locally.

The pack of Abrysvo® vaccine is physically larger than most other vaccines supplied via ImmForm. The vaccine must be stored between 2 to 8˚C. Please ensure you have enough fridge capacity before placing any orders. To help with planning storage requirements, each single dose pack measures 73mm x 35mm x 116mm (H x W x D).

When ordering Abrysvo® vaccine, orders should be placed for the ImmForm product that is specific to each RSV protection programme.

Product ordered for the infant RSV protection programme (offered to pregnant women) should not be used for the older adult RSV protection programme and vice versa. Account holders will see two different product lines and should order accordingly.

To minimise wastage due to fridge failures, please order no more than 2 weeks’ worth of stock.

Details about the RSV vaccination programmes are published in chapter 27a of the Green Book.

Further details about Abrysvo® vaccine can be found in the SmPC.

Contact helpdesk@immform.org.uk for ordering queries.

Vaccines for the 2024 to 2025 children’s flu programme supplied by UKHSA

All live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) Fluenz® has now expired. If you still need to give a second dose of flu vaccine 4 weeks after the first dose (for example, for children in clinical risk groups aged 2 to under 9 years who have not received influenza vaccine before), then it is safe and effective to give an inactivated vaccine.

The Cell Based Quadrivalent Influenza Vaccine (Surface Antigen, Inactivated) (QIVc) vaccine will remain available to order until Thursday 27 March 2025, with final deliveries on 31 March 2025. All QIVc supplied by UKHSA for the children’s programme expires on 31 May 2025.

Please ensure that all expired children’s flu vaccines are disposed of in line with local policies and recorded through the ImmForm stock incident page.

Influenza vaccines for the 2025 to 2026 season

Information on all influenza vaccines that will be marketed in the UK for the 2025 to 2026 season are available on .GOV.UK

The impact of changes to opening hours on routine vaccine deliveries

Please consider temporary changes to opening times when placing ImmForm orders. Orders should only be placed for days when your site is open and capable of receiving them. If you are aware of a scheduled site closure, please refrain from placing an order for that date. In case of a one-off closure, consider rescheduling your order for the week before or after. This approach will contribute to improved overall efficiencies and enhance delivery performance for the benefit of all customers.

It is not possible to accommodate one-off changes to delivery days. Customers should report long-term changes to the days and times when they can accept deliveries, such as routine training days and closures, by contacting Movianto UK Customer Care (moviantouk.nhscc@movianto.com; 01234 587207).

This should not be used to report short-term changes due to absence or holidays.

DTaP/IPV/Hib/HepB vaccine ordering

Supplies of DTaP/IPV/Hib/HepB vaccines Infanrix hexa® and Vaxelis® are available for the routine infant primary immunisations programme.

Orders for Infanrix hexa® remain unrestricted. Customers in England and Wales may order up to 20 packs of Vaxelis® per ImmForm account per week. Customers in Scotland should refer to their local ordering restrictions. Providers should not order more than 2 weeks’ worth of stock to minimise wastage due to fridge failures. For assistance, please contact helpdesk@immform.org.uk.

The European Union (EU) Falsified Medicines Directive (FMD) no longer applies in Northern Ireland

From 1 January 2025, the European Union (EU) Falsified Medicines Directive (FMD) no longer applies in Northern Ireland. The Windsor Framework agreement removes any EU FMD packaging, labelling and barcode requirements for medicines distributed in Northern Ireland.

Customers in Northern Ireland are not required, nor will they have the capability, to verify medicines using the European Medicines Verification System (EMVS/SecurMed).

Customers across the UK no longer have access to the EU database to verify or decommission unique identifier (UI) codes and will be unable to scan FMD barcodes in at any stage of the supply chain.

MMR vaccine ordering

M-M-RvaxPro vaccine should be ordered for all MMR vaccinations, unless a patient requires a porcine gelatine-free MMR vaccine. ImmForm customers in England and Wales may order M-M-RvaxPro vaccine without restriction.

In addition, ImmForm customers in England and Wales may order up to ten porcine gelatine-free Priorix vaccines per account per week.

ImmForm customers in Scotland should refer to their local ordering restrictions.

Both MMR vaccines may only be ordered for outbreak purposes when this is part of a national catch-up campaign.

Non-routine vaccine supply

Hepatitis A vaccine

Adult

• GSK: supply of Havrix Adult PFS singles and packs of 10 are currently available
• Sanofi Pasteur: Avaxim PFS singles are currently available. Avaxim packs of 10 are currently available
• MSD: VAQTA Adult is available

Paediatric

• GSK: supply of Havrix Paediatric singles and packs of 10 are currently available
• MSD: VAQTA Paediatric is available
• Sanofi Pasteur: Avaxim Junior singles are currently available

Hepatitis B vaccine

Adult

• GSK: Engerix B PFS singles and packs of 10 are currently available
• GSK: supply of Fendrix is currently available
• MSD: HBVAXPRO 10μg is available
• MSD: HBVAXPRO 40μg is available
• Valneva: PreHevbri is no longer marketed in the UK

Paediatric

• GSK: supplies of Engerix B Paediatric singles are currently available
• MSD: HBVAXPRO 5μg is available

Combined hepatitis A and B vaccine

• GSK: Twinrix Adult singles and packs of 10 are available
• GSK: Twinrix Paediatric is currently available
• GSK: Ambirix is available

Combined hepatitis A and typhoid vaccine

• Sanofi: Viatim is now a discontinued product and no longer available for sale

Typhoid vaccine

• Bavarian Nordic: Vivotif is available
• Sanofi: Typhim singles and packs of 10 are available

Rabies vaccine

• Bavarian Nordic: Rabipur is currently available
• Sanofi: Verorab is currently available

Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV)

• MSD: supply of Pneumovax 23 (PPV23) PFS is available

Pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine (PCV)

• Pfizer: Prevenar 13 is currently available
• MSD: Vaxneuvance is currently available

Varicella zoster vaccine

• GSK: VARILRIX is currently available
• MSD: VARIVAX is available
• MSD: ZOSTAVAX is a discontinued product

Diphtheria, tetanus and poliomyelitis (inactivated) vaccine

• Sanofi : Revaxis is available

Diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (acellular) and poliomyelitis (inactivated) vaccine

• GSK: supply of Boostrix-IPV is currently available
• Sanofi: Repevax is currently available

MMR

• MSD: MMR Vaxpro is currently available
• GSK: Priorix is currently available

Meningitis ACWY vaccine

• GSK: Menveo is currently available
• Pfizer: Nimenrix is currently available
• Sanofi: MenQuadfi is available

Yellow fever

• Sanofi: Stamaril is available

Human papillomavirus vaccine

• MSD: GARDASIL has been discontinued
• MSD: Gardasil 9 is currently available
• GSK: Cervarix has been discontinued

Cholera vaccine

• Bavarian Nordic: Vaxchora is available
• Valneva: Dukoral is available

Japanese encephalytis vaccine

• Valneva: Ixiaro is available

Meningococcal group B vaccine

• GSK: Bexsero is currently available

Diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, Hib vaccine and poliomyelitis

• GSK: Infanrix IPV+Hib is currently available

Hib + meningococcal group C combined vaccine

• GSK: Menitorix is currently available

Live attenuated rotavirus vaccine

• GSK: Rotarix is currently available

Herpes zoster vaccine

• GSK: Shingrix is currently available

Diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis

• Sanofi: Adacel is available to order without restrictions

Dengue tetravalent vaccine

• Takeda: Qdenga is currently available

Respiratory syncytial virus vaccine

• Pfizer: Abrysvo is currently available