Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of prioritising children under 16 with Down’s Syndrome for covid-19 vaccination.

Based on advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), children aged under 16 years old, including those with Down’s Syndrome, are not included for routine vaccination. Overall, there is a relatively low risk to children from COVID-19 and very limited existing data on vaccination in adolescents, with no data on vaccination in younger children. The evidence does not yet support recommending children should be routinely vaccinated. However, the JCVI’s current advice is that only those children at very high risk of exposure and serious outcomes, such as older children with severe neuro-disabilities that require residential care, should be offered vaccination.

Decisions on vaccination, including for COVID-19, are ultimately for the clinician leading on an individual’s care. The JCVI advises that where vaccination is considered for someone under 16 years old, clinicians should discuss the risks and benefits of vaccination with a person with parental responsibility.