Guidance

Airborne allergens and syndromic surveillance

The UKHSA real-time syndromic surveillance service monitors seasonal trends of public health and climate conditions.

From:
UK Health Security Agency and Centre for Climate and Health Security
Published
7 August 2025

Applies to England

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Topic: environmental exposures
Air-related exposure: airborne allergens
Part of: Monitoring and Modelling of Airborne Allergens

Important resources for airborne allergens and syndromic surveillance::

Summary

Syndromic surveillance is a public health monitoring method that collects and analyses health-related data in near real-time to provide early warnings of potential public health threats. During winter, syndromic surveillance reports are published weekly to support decision-making within the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and other health sectors. This approach enables timely public health actions by identifying unusual patterns or trends in health-seeking behaviour.

UKHSA coordinates several national syndromic surveillance systems through its Real-time Syndromic Surveillance Team (ReSST). These systems gather and analyse anonymised health data from various sources, including:

  • NHS 111: Monitoring calls to the national health helpline.

  • general practitioners (GPs): Tracking both in-hours and out-of-hours consultations.

  • emergency departments (EDs): Observing attendance patterns.

  • ambulance services: Analysing dispatch call data.

Updates to this page

Published 7 August 2025

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