The flu jab has started - and from October, more children can get it at a pharmacy

What happened

The NHS flu vaccination programme for 2026/27 has begun, and there are some changes worth knowing about. The first phase started on 1 September 2026. It covers children, pregnant women and some adults. Everyone else in an eligible group can start booking from 1 October 2026. The biggest change is about children who have a health condition that puts them at higher risk. From 1 October 2026, community pharmacies can vaccinate children aged from two years up to under 18 years who are in a clinical risk group. Until now, most of those children had to wait for their school session or book at a GP surgery. Community pharmacies will also carry on offering the vaccine to two and three year olds from 1 October. There is a second date to note. From 1 December 2026, pharmacies will be able to catch up school-aged children who missed their vaccination at school. The NHS National Booking Service opened earlier than usual this year, on 17 August 2026. NHS England has asked services to aim to have most vaccinations done by 30 November 2026. The programme runs until 31 March 2027. UKHSA published its own plain-English guide to who is eligible on 27 August 2026.

Why this matters

Flu is not just a heavy cold. For a child with asthma, diabetes, a heart condition, a weakened immune system or a neurological condition, flu can turn into something that needs hospital care. Those are the children this change is aimed at. Until now, families in that position often had a frustrating wait. The school session might not come round until November. The GP surgery might have limited slots. Meanwhile flu season was already building. Opening up pharmacies gives those families another door. Most people in England live within a short walk or drive of a pharmacy, and many open at weekends and in the evening. For a parent juggling work and school runs, that is a real difference. NHS England has also asked services to make it clear that at-risk children do not have to wait for their school offer. They can come forward early. There is a wider point too. Flu spreads fastest among school-age children, who then pass it to grandparents, to babies too young to be vaccinated, and to people having cancer treatment. Vaccinating children protects them, and it slows the spread to everyone else.

What the evidence actually says

It is worth being precise about what this change is and is not. This is a change in where you can get the vaccine, not a change in who should have it. The eligible groups for 2026/27 are broadly as before: children aged two and three, school-aged children, pregnant women, frontline health and social care workers, adults aged 18 to 65 in a clinical risk group, everyone aged 65 and over, and care home residents. Flu vaccines are not perfect, and it is important to say so plainly. How well they work varies from year to year, because the vaccine has to be designed months before anyone knows which strains will actually circulate. In a good year the match is close. In a poorer year it is less close. What is consistent is the direction of the effect. Vaccination reduces your chance of catching flu, and it reduces the chance of severe illness if you do catch it. For people at higher risk, that second part is often the more important one. One more thing that is easy to miss. Timing matters. Protection takes about two weeks to build, and it fades over the season. Getting vaccinated in October or early November is generally the sweet spot for most adults. Waiting until January means going through the early part of the season unprotected. RSV vaccination is now available all year round for adults over 75 and for pregnant women. That is separate from flu, and eligibility is different.

Qurexa perspective

We work in community healthcare in Lincolnshire, and we see the same thing every autumn. The people who most need the flu jab are often the people who find it hardest to get to one. That might be someone housebound with COPD. It might be a parent of a child with complex needs who cannot easily sit in a busy waiting room. It might be an older person who no longer drives. The move to allow pharmacies to vaccinate more at-risk children helps because it adds convenience, and convenience is not a small thing. It is often the difference between a jab happening and not happening. If getting out is genuinely difficult for you or someone you care for, it is worth asking your GP practice about home vaccination. Some areas arrange it. It is not advertised widely, so people rarely think to ask. And if you already collect medicines for a long-term condition, October is a sensible month to check that your repeat prescription is up to date at the same time. One trip, two jobs done.

Practical advice

Here is a simple plan for this autumn. Work out whether you are eligible. The UKHSA guide published on 27 August 2026 sets out the groups clearly, and a pharmacist can check with you in a minute. If you have a child aged two to under 18 with a health condition such as asthma, diabetes, a heart or lung condition, a weakened immune system or a neurological condition, you do not have to wait for the school session. From 1 October you can ask a participating pharmacy. If your child missed their school session, remember 1 December. Pharmacies can catch them up from then. Book rather than hope. The NHS National Booking Service has been open since 17 August, and slots in popular pharmacies fill up in October. If you are pregnant, you can be vaccinated at any stage of pregnancy. It protects you, and it passes some protection to your baby for the first few months of life. Do not put it off past November if you can help it. NHS England is aiming for most vaccinations to be complete by 30 November. If you are eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine too, ask whether you can have both at the same visit. In many places you can.

What to know

The 2026/27 NHS flu programme started on 1 September for children, pregnant women and some adults, and opens to all other eligible groups on 1 October. The main change this year is that community pharmacies can vaccinate at-risk children aged two to under 18 from 1 October, and can catch up children who missed their school session from 1 December. Eligibility itself has not changed much. What has changed is how many places will say yes when you turn up. Protection takes around two weeks to build, so booking in October or early November gives you the best cover through the worst of the season. If you are not sure whether you or your child qualifies, ask. Pharmacists check this all day long and will not mind the question. Sources: NHS England, "Flu Vaccination Programme 2026/27", 2026, https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/flu-vaccination-programme-2026-27/ | UK Health Security Agency, "Your guide to who's eligible for the autumn 2026 flu vaccine", 27 August 2026, https://ukhsa.blog.gov.uk/2026/08/27/your-guide-to-whos-eligible-for-the-autumn-2026-flu-vaccine/ | GOV.UK, "Amendment to national flu immunisation programme 2026 to 2027 letter", 2026, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-flu-immunisation-programme-plan-2026-to-2027/amendment-to-national-flu-immunisation-programme-2026-to-2027-letter This article is for general information and does not replace advice from a doctor, pharmacist or other qualified healthcare professional. If you have questions about whether a vaccine is right for you or your child, speak to your GP practice or pharmacist.