Vaccines for babies and pre-school children
8 weeks
6-in-1 vaccine
This is given as a single injection in the thigh to protect your baby against 6 serious diseases: diphtheria, hepatitis B, Hib, polio, tetanus and whooping cough.
Find out more about the 6-in-1 vaccine.
MenB vaccine
This is given as an injection in the thigh to protect your baby against serious infections which can cause meningitis and sepsis (blood poisoning). These infections can lead to severe brain damage, amputations, or even death.
Find out more about the MenB vaccine
Rotavirus vaccine
This is given as a liquid straight into the baby’s mouth for them to swallow.
It protects against rotavirus, a highly infectious stomach bug that typically affects babies and young children, causing diarrhoea and vomiting, tummy ache and fever.
12 weeks
6-in-1 vaccine (2nd dose)
This is given as a single injection in the thigh to protect your baby against 6 serious diseases: diphtheria, hepatitis B, Hib, polio, tetanus and whooping cough.
Find out more about the 6-in-1 vaccine
Rotavirus vaccine (2nd dose)
This is given as a liquid straight into the baby’s mouth for them to swallow.
It protects against rotavirus, a highly infectious stomach bug that typically affects babies and young children, causing diarrhoea and vomiting, tummy ache and fever.
Find out more about the rotavirus vaccine
Pneumococcal (PVC) vaccine
This protects against a serious infection that can cause pneumonia, meningitis and sepsis (blood poisoning). At their worst, these infections can cause permanent brain damage, or even death.
The vaccine is given as an injection in the baby’s thigh.
Find out more about the pneumococcal vaccine
16 weeks
6-in-1 vaccine (3rd dose)
This is given as a single injection in the thigh to protect your baby against 6 serious diseases: diphtheria, hepatitis B, Hib, polio, tetanus and whooping cough.
Find out more about the 6-in-1 vaccine
MenB vaccine (2nd dose)
This is given as an injection in the thigh to protect your baby against serious infections which can cause meningitis and sepsis (blood poisoning). These infections can lead to severe brain damage, amputations, or even death.
Find out more about the MenB vaccine
1 year
Hib/MenC vaccine
This is given as an injection in the upper arm or thigh to protect your baby against serious infections which can cause meningitis, pneumonia, sepsis (blood poisoning) and other illnesses and death.
Find out more about the Hib/MenC vaccine
MMR vaccine (1st dose)
This is given as an injection in the upper arm or thigh to protect your baby against measles, mumps and rubella.
These are infections that spread easily and can make people seriously ill, including with meningitis and hearing loss.
Find out more about the MMR vaccine.
Pneumococcal vaccine (2nd dose)
This protects against a serious infection that can cause pneumonia, meningitis and sepsis (blood poisoning). At their worst, these infections can cause permanent brain damage, or even death.
The vaccine is given as an injection in the baby’s thigh.
Find out more about the pneumococcal vaccine
MenB vaccine (3rd dose)
This is given as an injection in the thigh to protect your baby against serious infections which can cause meningitis and sepsis (blood poisoning). These infections can lead to severe brain damage, amputations, or even death.
Find out more about the MenB vaccine
From 2 years
Flu vaccine (every year)
The flu vaccine is given as a spray in the child’s nose. It’s offered every year to children to help protect them against flu.
Flu can be a very unpleasant illness for children. It can also lead to serious problems, such as bronchitis and pneumonia.
Children can catch and spread flu easily. Vaccinating them also protects others who are at risk from flu, like babies and older people.
The nasal spray vaccine offers the best protection for children. They will be offered the flu vaccine injection instead if the nasal spray vaccine is not suitable for them. Children who are at higher risk from flu may be offered the flu vaccine injection from 6 months.
Find out more about the children’s flu vaccine
3 years and 4 months
"MMR" vaccine (2nd dose)
This is given as an injection in the upper arm or thigh to protect your baby against measles, mumps and rubella.
These are infections that spread easily and can make people seriously ill, including with meningitis and hearing loss.
Find out more about the MMR vaccine.
4-in-1 pre-school booster
This is given as an injection in the upper arm. It protects against diphtheria, polio, tetanus and whooping cough. It increases some of the protection your child already has from having the 6-in-1 vaccine at 8, 12 and 16 weeks old.
Find out more about the 4-in-1 preschool booster.
Vaccines for teenagers
12 to 13 years
HPV vaccine
The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is offered to boys and girls aged 12 to 13. It is given as two doses: the first dose is routinely offered in school year 8, and the second dose 6 to 24 months after the first dose.
The HPV vaccine helps protect against cancers caused by HPV, including:
- cervical cancer
- some mouth and throat (head and neck) cancers
- some cancers of the anal and genital areas
It also helps protect against genital warts.
14 years
3-in-1 teenage booster vaccine
The 3-in-1 teenage booster, also known as the TDP vaccine, is routinely offered to young people at secondary school year 9 and boosts protection against tetanus, diphtheria and polio.
MenACWY vaccine
The Meningococcal ACWY (MenACWY) vaccine is routinely offered to teenagers in schools years 9 and 10. It is given by a single injection into the upper arm and protects against 4 strains of the meningococcal bacteria – A, C, W and Y – which cause meningitis and blood poisoning (septicaemia).
It’s also important for students going to university or college for the first time to make sure that they have had their MenACWY vaccine. This is because older teenagers and new students are at higher risk of infection because many of them mix closely with lots of new people, some of whom may unknowingly carry the meningococcal bacteria at the back of their nose and throat.
It’s important that vaccines are given on time for the best protection, but if you or your child missed a vaccine, contact your GP to catch up.
NHS vaccines are available free for anyone who needs them.
For babies, pre-school children, and over 18s, speak to your GP surgery to book a vaccination appointment and to check which vaccines you or your child has had. You can also check your child’s personal child health record, the ‘Red Book’ to see if your child is due any vaccines. It’s best to have vaccines on time, but you can still catch up on most vaccines if you miss them.
Children and young people aged 4 to 18 can get vaccines they missed from a catch-up clinic run by a local nursing team. Find out more from your GP.