Flu & Covid-19 Vaccination Service 2025-2026
For more details regarding the vaccinations service, please visit the Community Pharmacy England website Below is a summary of the services.
Flu Vaccination Service
NHS England circulated a national flu immunisation programme 2025 to 2026 letter in February 2025 setting out guidance for the 2025 to 2026 season.
On 28th July 2025 the programme was amended to, community pharmacies will be able to offer 2-3-year-olds flu vaccinations during the 2025 to 2026 flu season. Community pharmacy service delivery will begin from 1 October 2025, Community Pharmacy England have more details on their website
- There are no changes to the eligible cohorts for the 2025/26 season compared to the last season.
- From 1st September 2025, pharmacies will be able to vaccinate pregnant women.
- Then, from 1st October 2025, vaccination of the other adult cohorts will commence.
- The campaign end date will be 31st March 2026. Although NHS England anticipate that most vaccinations should be completed by the end of November 2025 to provide the best possible protection going into winter.
- The National Booking System (NBS) will be opened for participating sites to post flu and COVID-19 vaccination appointments from 18th August 2025.
- NBS will be open for bookings from the public from 1st September 2025 for vaccination from 1st October 2025. The last available appointment date on NBS for flu appointments will be 31st March 2026.
- There are changes to the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation recommended adult flu vaccines for the 2025/26 season.
- NHS England has reinforced advice regarding the restriction on the use of second line vaccines and has advised pharmacy owners to place orders with more than one manufacturer to ensure receipt of sufficient stock.
COVID-19 vaccinations
NHS England has confirmed via a system letter, the patient cohorts that will be eligible for vaccination in the Autumn 2025 COVID-19 vaccination programme.
For the autumn 2025 programme will cover:
- Adults aged 75 years and over;
- Residents in a care home for older adults; and
- Individuals aged 6 months and over who are immunosuppressed, as defined in COVID-19: the green book, chapter 14a (Tables 3 and 4).
- The COVID-19 programme will run from 1st October 2025 to 31st January 2026 with the expectation that most COVID-19 vaccinations should be completed by 19th December 2025.
- The letter advises that NBS will be opened for participating sites to post flu and COVID-19 vaccination appointments from 18th August 2025 and it will be open for bookings from the public from 1st September 2025 for vaccination from 1st October 2025.The last available appointment date on NBS will be 31st January 2026 for COVID-19, however, NBS will remain open for flu only appointments until 31st March 2026.
