The roll out of the largest vaccination programme in the history of the NHS has begun.

Local services run by family doctors and their teams are opening across England as practices take delivery of the PfizerBioNTech vaccine. Some launched their clinics yesterday, while the majority get up and running today.

As part of the plan for our district, a vaccination hub has been set up at Woodchurch Leisure Centre in Birkenhead. It will serve GP practices from the Healthier West Wirral Primary Care Network, including Heswall and Pensby, the Greasby group, and the Warren Medical Centre in Thingwall.

Dr Nikki Kanani, practising GP and NHS Director of Primary Care, said: "GPs, nurses, pharmacists and other primary care staff are eager to play their part in protecting people against coronavirus.

"This is the greatest vaccination programme ever undertaken by the NHS and, to help vaccinate people safely we will be working with local communities to deliver it in convenient and familiar settings."

As we know, vaccination will be given first to members of top priority groups like residents in care homes, the elderly and vulnerable, and frontline health and social care workers. Only when nine high risk groups have been dealt with can the vaccine be administered to the wider population.

Dr. Kanani added: "As a GP I am proud to be part of this huge national effort to protect our patients against the virus and I would urge the public to come forward when they are called up for the vaccine."

You can find more information, including directions to the vaccination site, by visiting the Heswall and Pensby Group site.