100,000 boosters and counting – local vaccine programme hits new milestone

Rochdale Borough Council is encouraging residents to get their Covid-19 booster jabs, as well as asking anyone still to have their first or second dose to come forward after another milestone was reached recently with over 100,000 boosters now delivered.

Over 1,600 people are being jabbed each week in the borough’s vaccination centres, surgeries, church halls, libraries and community centres.

Anyone aged 16 and over can have a booster jab, if it’s 12 weeks or longer since they had their second vaccine.

Vaccines are also now being offered at some of the local drop-in clinics to 12 to 15-year olds (details below) with over 40% of this age group now having received a vaccine.

In addition to the booster jabs, over 300,000 first and second doses have also been administered in the borough. Anyone aged 16 or over can have their first or second jab at any of the clinics. The second dose of the Pfizer vaccine can be given to people 18 years and over if it has been eight weeks or more since they had their first jab and for people 16-17 years if it has been twelve weeks or more since their first jab.

 

 

Councillor Daalat Ali, Rochdale Council's cabinet member for health said thanks to a phenomenal effort in December the vaccine programme is in a strong position: “Progress continues to be made vaccinating residents against Covid-19 and since December we’ve seen the number of unvaccinated residents fall from 50,000 to 40,000 so we are rapidly heading in the right direction.”

“If you are still to come forward please do without delay and if you have any questions healthcare staff will be happy to answer them. It’s important to remember while cases are coming down, hospital admissions decreasing and the situation overall is improving, we need to see all these trends continue, and the emergence of the Omicron variant is a reminder of how quickly situations can change.

“The pandemic is not over and we need to get everyone protected with the vaccine. It’s vital that people listen to the message that two doses is not enough to give you good protection. We do need the booster dose to bring our immunity back up, for your own health and also because it’s vital in helping older and more vulnerable people that you come into contact with, particularly within your own family.”

This weekend there are drop-in clinics operating in Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale administering the Pfizer vaccine:

• Friday 21 January 2022
  2pm - 6pm (last walk-in 15 mins before close)
  Middleton Health Centre, First Floor, Middleton Shopping Centre, Limetrees Road, Middleton M24 4EL
  First and second doses for 12-17 years. Boosters for 16 years and over.
   
• Saturday 22 January 2022
  10am - 4pm (last walk-in 15 mins before close)
  Number One Riverside, Smith Street, Rochdale, OL16 1XU
  First and second doses for 16 years and over. Boosters for 16 years and over.
   
• Saturday 22 January 2022
  9am - 1pm (last walk-in 15 mins before close)
  Middleton Health Centre, First Floor, Middleton Shopping Centre, Limetrees Road, Middleton M24 4EL
  First and second doses for 12-17 years. Boosters for 16 years and over.
   
• Sunday 23 January 2022
  10am - 4pm (last walk-in 15 mins before close)
  Number One Riverside, Smith Street, Rochdale, OL16 1XU
  First and second doses for 16 years and over. Boosters for 16 years and over.
   
• Sunday 23 January 2022
  9am-1pm (last walk-in 15 mins before close)
  Hopwood Medical Centre, 1-3 Walton Street, Heywood OL10 2BS
  First and second doses for 12-17 years. Boosters for 16 years and over.
   
• Sunday, 23 January 2022
  1pm-4pm (last walk-in 15 mins before close)
  Castlemere Community Centre, 60 Tweedale Street, Rochdale OL11 1HH
  First and second doses for 16 years and over. Boosters for 16 years and over.

For more information about the covid-19 vaccine and to find a local clinic visit rochdale.gov.uk/covidvaccine.