ALL 12 to 15-year-olds in Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire will be offered a vaccination against Covid-19 in the coming weeks.

Since the end of September, Covid jabs for children aged 12 to 15 have been taking place in schools across the region — several thousand have already received a dose of the vaccine.

Over 45,000 local children are eligible for the vaccine which is being delivered in schools by Virgin Care's immunisation service team.

Home-schooled children, as well as those in private education, will also be included in the vaccine rollout.

Director of nursing and quality, Gill May said: "As we head into winter, we know that parents are keen for their children to have the vaccine, not only to ensure they are protected against coronavirus, but also to minimise the risk of any further disruption to education.

"As is the case with any complex vaccination programme, there may be times when planned clinics have to be rearranged due to factors outside any organisation's control, such as staff sickness and classroom isolations following a positive covid test result.

"In these cases, sessions will be rearranged as quickly as possible, with plans put in place to ensure that all children are able to receive their Covid-19 vaccination before the end of November."

Details of these additional clinics will be sent to schools to be shared with parents.

Young people between the ages of 16 and 17 are also eligible for the coronavirus vaccine.

More than 60 per cent of 16 and 17-year-olds in the BSW region have so far had the single necessary dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

For more information about the local rollout of the coronavirus vaccine, visit www.bswccg.nhs.uk