Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the uptake of the covid-19 vaccine among pregnant women.

Vaccine toolkits for local services, stakeholders, partners and employers address concerns around pregnancy, breastfeeding and fertility. Additionally, we have shared case stories in the media of women of childbearing age who have received the COVID-19 vaccine before, during or after pregnancy to reassure women with concerns. Locally, we have supported webinars and engagement sessions focused on women’s concerns and tailored to demographic groups. We have also introduced new communications through social media focused on younger women.

NHS England and NHS Improvement are working with regional teams and providers to ensure that advice on vaccination in pregnancy, including the risks and benefits, is being offered antenatally and that information materials are available across antenatal and primary care settings. NHS England and NHS Improvement have asked maternity and primary care services to support all general practitioners, practice nurses, midwives and obstetricians to give objective, evidence-based advice to women on vaccination in pregnancy at every antenatal contact.

Local systems are encouraged to implement best practice on vaccinating pregnant women opportunistically during maternity appointments wherever possible. All National Health Service regions have pathways with maternity providers in place, to facilitate antenatal vaccination through mobile or pop-up clinics, those at maternity sites or local or national vaccination centres. We are currently considering a targeted approach for the identification and invitation of pregnant women under the age of 18 years old.