FEWER young people in York received the jab which prevents meningitis last year than before the Covid-19 pandemic, new figures show.

And a doctor in the city said the jab is "extremely safe and effective" against a disease which is "commonly fatal".

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) figures show 58.7 per cent of Year 9 students in York got the MenACWY vaccine – which protects against four strains of the meningococcal bacteria – in the 2021/22 academic year.

This is a drop from 86.1 per cent in 2018/19, the last academic year before the pandemic.

Dr David Fair, of the Jorvik Medical Practice, said: "There seems to be a gradual fall in take-up of all vaccines including the meningitis ACWY vaccination. Meningitis ACWY is given to young people aged 13-25 as a single shot.

"It is extremely safe and extremely effective against a disease which is commonly fatal. Vaccination take-up does seem to go in cycles, but I wonder if the recent fall may be due to the completely false adverse scare stories about the covid vaccine.

"We need to remember also that having a vaccine only gives protection against that particular disease and that we often need many vaccinations to build effective immunity against various different diseases."

Across England, uptake of the vaccine has fallen from 88 per cent in 2018/19 to just 69.2 per cent last year.

There has also been a country-wide decline in uptake for the three-in-one vaccine – which protects against tetanus, diphtheria and polio. It fell from 87.6 per cent among Year 9 students pre-pandemic to 69 per cent last year.

In York, uptake of the three-in-one booster dropped from 85.4 per cent in the last pre-pandemic school year to 58.5 per cent last year.

Health Minister Maria Caulfield said: "It’s incredibly important for children to stay up to date with routine vaccinations as this remains one of our best defences against infectious diseases, not just for the person being vaccinated but for their family, friends and those around them."

The minister added that in support of World Immunisation Week, she is urging parents to speak to their school nurse, school immunisation team or GP surgery to book an appointment if their children are not vaccinated.

Dr Vanessa Saliba, consultant epidemiologist at UKHSA, said: “In recent years we have seen vaccine uptake fall due to the challenges posed by the pandemic. Many young people who missed out on their vaccinations have already been caught up, but more needs to be done to ensure all those eligible are vaccinated."

Unicef said about 67 million children around the world did not receive routine jabs between 2019 and 2021.

The international children’s body added overall support for vaccines remains “relatively strong” but several factors suggest the “threat of vaccine hesitancy may be growing”.