Blackburn Cathedral is to become a new NHS large-scale vaccination centre.

Thousands of people aged 80 and over are to be invited to book a coronavirus vaccination at the new site.

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Those who are eligible, live within a 45 minute drive from the site who
haven’t already been vaccinated by their local GP led vaccination services or hospital hub will receive letters from the NHS Covid-19 Vaccination
Booking Service telling them how to book their appointment.

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Now that more doses of the Covid-19 vaccines are available, the NHS can open more services in Lancashire and South Cumbria, including large
vaccination centres and, in the near future, pharmacies.

Blackburn Cathedral is one of a number of larger sites opening across
Lancashire and South Cumbria in the coming weeks to offer a convenient alternative to GP and hospital services.

They aim to deliver thousands of vaccinations every week.

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The NHS is rolling out additional services quickly, but it is still important that the public do not try and book or go to these services before they receive their booking letter.

Those who book into the vaccination centre will be greeted by volunteers who will marshal car parks and register people as they arrive.

Bookings are staggered to allow for social distancing, and people will receive a health status check and a pre-vaccination assessment before they have their jab, with the whole service led and overseen by trained nurses.

People driving into Blackburn to get their coronavirus vaccination at Blackburn Cathedral will be able to park for free in council-owned car parks at Weir Street and Penny Street.

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Marshal’s are there to ensure no tickets are handed out to those attending their vaccine appointments.

Covid-19 Vaccination Director for Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care System, Jane Scattergood, said: “As the expansion of the Covid-19 vaccination programme continues to gather pace, we are delighted that Blackburn Cathedral will be used as a large vaccination centre.

“GPs, nurses, pharmacists, countless other staff, and volunteers have worked incredibly hard behind the scenes to get the site ready as part of the roll-out of Covid-19 vaccinations. We are planning for more vaccination centres to go live in Lancashire and South Cumbria over the coming weeks.

“We are asking the public to support the NHS by not contacting your GP about your vaccination, we will invite you when it is your time.”

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Nationally more than 80,000 people have trained to deliver the vaccines and will be deployed as supplies allow the programme to expand.

They include current and former NHS staff, clinicians from the independent sector and allied health professionals like physios, among others.

Director of Public Health and Wellbeing for Blackburn with Darwen,
Professor Dominic Harrison, said: “Vaccinating the most vulnerable people in our communities, those most likely to be hospitalised, will make a very big difference to how quickly we can exit the most severe control measures we have had to put in place to save lives.

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“I urge everyone invited to attend for vaccination to take up their appointments – we cannot afford to miss even one opportunity. 

“Although we are going to have a very big challenge over the next two months, we should remember – it is always darkest just before the dawn and the vaccination programme is truly the ‘beginning of the end’ of the pandemic.”

Invitations to attend the new centre are being issued to people aged 80 or over who are not listed as having been vaccinated at a hospital or GP service.

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Those like care home residents who are unable to travel to vaccine centres, hospitals or GP-led sites are already receiving the vaccine at home.

If you receive a letter from the national NHS Covid-19 Vaccination Booking Service and you book an appointment, please make sure you attend it. The sooner you get the vaccine, the earlier you will be protected against Covid-19.

In Lancashire and South Cumbria, additional vaccination centres will go live over the coming weeks in Central Lancashire, Fylde Coast, Morecambe Bay and Pennine Lancashire.

As soon as these are ready and available they will appear on the national NHS Covid-19 Vaccination Booking Service.

For more information about the Covid-19 vaccination programme in Lancashire and South Cumbria, including how to get involved, visit: https://www.healthierlsc.co.uk/CovidVaccination

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