Children in England aged between five and 11 to be offered Covid vaccine

Around six million children in the UK aged five to 11 are to be offered a Covid jab in order to protect them against future waves, officials said.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) said children should be offered lower doses of the vaccine on a "non-urgent" basis.

With the rollout expected to start in April, youngsters will be offered two 10 microgram doses of Pfizer/BioNTech with an interval of at least 12 weeks between doses.

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It is a third of the strength of a usual adult dose - research shows that the immune response from a lower dose in those aged five to 11 is just as good as a full dose in those aged between 16 and 25.

Scotland and Wales have already announced their intention to follow the JCVI guidance with England and Northern Ireland now following suit.

The JCVI has noted that the virus does not pose a threat to most children, with only a small amount likely to develop serious disease from infection.

The move will also provide some short-term protection against mild infection across the age group, it said.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said: “I have accepted the advice from the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) to make a non-urgent offer of Covid-19 vaccines to all children aged five to 11 in England.

“The NHS is already offering vaccines to at-risk children and those who live with immunosuppressed people in this age group.

“The JCVI advice follows a thorough review by our independent medicines regulator, the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency), which approved Pfizer’s paediatric vaccine as safe and effective for children aged