Nottinghamshire’s public health teams are ramping up vaccination efforts in Mansfield after Covid infection rates reached the highest in England.
Government data on Thursday (September 2) showed the town was the most affected area of the country, with a rate of 560.6 per 100,000 people.
While this was down from a week earlier, when the rate stood at 638.3, no other area in the country recorded a higher infection rate at that time.
It comes after concerns were raised by a Nottinghamshire council leader over lagging vaccination rates in the north of the county.
The uptake in Mansfield, for example, is lower than the England average for both the first and second doses of the jab.
Around 82.1 per cent of eligible Mansfield adults have received their first dose, Government data shows, compared to 88.6 per cent nationwide.
For the second dose, Mansfield’s 76.3 per cent uptake was again lower than the 79.2 per cent England average.
Ashfield also has lower-than-average rates for its first doses, with second dose uptake roughly in line with the England average.
And Nottinghamshire County Council’s public health director, Jonathan Gribbin, says his teams are now working closely to increase vaccine uptake in Mansfield areas currently affected by high rates.
He said: “Our vaccination programme has already massively reduced the number of people hospitalised or dying as a result of Covid-19, and most people who are eligible have already taken advantage of the protection it gives.
“But we are concerned that some people remain unprotected.
“We’re working closely with our NHS partners and districts to encourage vaccine uptake in areas such as Mansfield where there are very high Covid-19 rates.
“We know Covid-19 is still circulating in our communities and I’m urging people to take up the vaccination offer to protect themselves and their loved ones. It’s not too late to get protected.”
Mansfield District Council is also increasing its efforts, confirming ‘community champions’ are currently delivering ‘grab a jab’ leaflets to homes in communities where uptake is lower-than-average.
And the county’s clinical commissioning group (CCG), is also urging people to have their vaccine to “keep you and those around you safe”.
It comes after Councillor Jason Zadrozny (Ash Ind), leader of Ashfield District Council, raised concerns about vaccination levels at Thursday’s county council policy committee.
He said: “We’ve seen a dramatic rise in positive Covid cases in places like Mansfield and Ashfield.
“This clearly remains an issue with lower-than-average vaccination rates, with [significantly] less being double vaccinated than other areas.
“Heatmaps have been produced by the NHS, which back up initial fears we had that places like Mansfield and Ashfield were struggling with lower vaccination levels.”
Andy Abrahams, Mansfield’s Labour mayor, has also urged people to wear face coverings in public, stating mask-wearing has become “noticeably lower” than in other parts of the county.
