A change to the UK’s vaccine programme will see toddlers protected against measles almost two years earlier than current guidelines require. Doctors will soon administer the second dose of the MMR vaccine to children when they reach 18 months old, as opposed to the long-established three years and four months.
Due to be implemented on January 1, 2026, it’s hoped the update will lead to increased uptake and consequently reduce the likelihood of outbreaks. It is part of a six-month shake-up decided by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), an advisory body made up of healthcare professionals and academics.
The first stage is beginning tomorrow (July 1), with babies now set to receive meningitis-preventing vaccines at different stages in their development The first dose of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13), which also protects against pneumonia, will be moved from 12 weeks to 16 weeks of age.
Youngsters will instead be given the second meningococcal group B (MenB) dose at 12 weeks old, as the peak age of infection has shifted from 5-6 months to 1-3 months. The routine Hib/MenC vaccine will no longer be offered to those turning one-year-old because it is no longer being manufactured.
The JCVI advised that it is no longer necessary due to the success of the teenage meningococcal vaccination programme in controlling meningococcal C disease across the population. Babies born to mothers with Hepatitis B will also no longer receive a dose of the relevant vaccine at 12 months old as they will receive it in the 6-in-1 vaccine from the beginning of next year.
This is the biggest change to the child vaccine programme since 2013, when the highly successful childhood flu and rotavirus vaccination programmes were introduced. A final agreement on JCVI’s recommendation to introduce a new childhood varicella (chickenpox) vaccination programme is pending and, if successful, will result in further updates at a later point.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) previously urged students in London to make sure they are up to date with their NHS childhood and adolescent vaccines against meningitis, measles and HPV. The government agency saw a surge in infections last summer as people newly came together in confined spaces such as schools and universities.
There have been 420 laboratory-confirmed cases of measles in England since the start of 2025, according to UKHSA statistics.
Symptoms of measles
Measles usually starts with cold-like symptoms, followed by a rash a few days later. Some people may also get small spots in their mouth.
The first symptoms of measles include:
- a high temperature
- a runny or blocked nose
- sneezing
- a cough
- red, sore, watery eyes
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Small white spots may appear inside the cheeks and on the back of the lips a few days later. These spots usually last a few days.
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A rash usually appears a few days after the cold-like symptoms. The rash starts on the face and behind the ears before spreading to the rest of the body.
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