Buckinghamshire Council Leader Martin Tett: "Nearly 20,000 Bucks and Aylesbury Vale residents have now received their COVID-19 vaccine"

The main talking points from his message are:

All Buckinghamshire residents aged 80 and above will be offered a vaccine appointment through their GP in the next fortnight

Nearly 20,000 Bucks residents have now received their COVID-19 vaccine

All Buckinghamshire residents aged 70 and above will be offered a vaccine appointment through their GP in the next four weeks

He wrote:

"I know many of you have been anxious hearing about people elsewhere who’ve already been vaccinated so I want to reassure you that there is now capacity to deliver the vaccine across the whole county.

"In the south we have a new GP led site opening in Burnham next week and in the north GPs have opened their vaccine hub in Buckingham today (Tuesday).

"There is also now a new mass vaccination site close by, in Slough. All of this means far more Buckinghamshire residents will now be offered vaccine appointments.

"Please remember that this programme is being delivered by the NHS and not the Council.

"We have been playing catch up with our neighbours to some extent but you will now see real pace in terms of the numbers being vaccinated here so please don’t worry - if you are expecting a vaccine and haven’t already heard anything yet, you will do very soon."

He went on to tell residents who were eligible how they could apply to be vaccinated.

Buckinghamshire residents are being invited for their vaccines in several ways:

-via their GP, and/or

-via a letter from the NHS nationally, inviting them to book an appointment via the national booking system at either at a mass vaccination site, such as Slough, if they live within 45 minutes, or a local pharmacy led site

-If you work in the health or care sectors you will be offered a vaccine through a hospital site. Residents who live in care homes or who are housebound will be offered a vaccine through their GP.

Residents can choose whether they want to book via the national system if they get an NHS letter, or wait to get their GP appointment.

If you decline a national appointment you’ll still be offered one from your own GP practice.

Martin continued:

"With regards to GP vaccine appointments your GP will contact you directly when it’s your turn for the vaccine.

"You won’t go to your own surgery to get your jab; instead GPs have formed 9 local ‘hubs’ where they’re giving the vaccines. Eight of these are already open and are vaccinating patients, working through the priority list. You can find out which hub your surgery is linked to here on our website.

"The COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective and it is the very best way to protect you from getting sick from COVID-19. Some scare stories and myths are circulating about the vaccine. It’s crucial that if you do want to know more about the COVID-19 vaccine that you get your information from a reliable source such as the NHS website."

He went on to stress that people should only gather vaccine information from reliable sources such as the NHS Websites, and that the Vaccine had passed rigorous health and safety checks.

"I do want to make some really important points:

"The COVID-19 vaccine, like all vaccines in the UK, has been approved for use after meeting the strict standards of safety, quality and effectiveness set out by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)

"More than 4 million people have been vaccinated in the UK so far and reports of any serious side effects such as allergic reactions have been very rare

"The COVID- 19 vaccine does not contain any egg or any animal products

"You can read more about the COVID-19 vaccine and the roll out on the Buckinghamshire Council website too, including the answers to many of the frequently asked questions."

Please be aware too that no vaccine is being wasted or discarded in Buckinghamshire at the end of each day. Standby lists of vulnerable patients are in use to make sure any vaccines left over from missed appointments do not go to waste.

Mr Tett added that people should be alert to scammers who are aiming to take advantage of this fragile situation.

The following advice has been issued by the Government.

The NHS will:

NEVER ask for payment – the vaccine is free

NEVER ask for bank details

NEVER arrive at your home unannounced to give you a vaccine

NEVER ask you to prove your identity by asking you to send documents like your passport.